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AWAY ffl THE WILDEMS; 

OR, 

LIFE AMONO THE RED mDIANH 


AND 

FUR-TRADERS OF NORTH AMERICA. 



R. M. BALLANTTNE, 


AUTHOR OF “dog CRUSOE,” “GORILLA HUNTERS,” “WILD 
MAN OF THE WEST,” ETC. 



PHILADELPHIA: 
PORTER & COATES. 
1876 . 


'1 




CAXTON PRESS OP 
8HERHAX A 0 0.. PHILADELPHIA. 





'-ti 



IN COURSE OF PUBLICATION. 


1. FIGHTING THE WHALES; or, Doings and Dangers 

on a Fishing Cruise. 

2. AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS ; or, Life among the 

Red Indians and Fur-Traders of North America. 

3. FAST IN THE ICE; or. Adventures in the Polar 

Regions. 

4. CHASING THE SUN; or. Rambles in Norway. 

5. UP IN THE CLOUDS; or. Balloon Voyages. 

6. LOST IN THE FOREST; or. Adventures in Brazil. 

7. DOWN IN THE DEEP; or. The Dangers and Won- 

ders of Diving. 

8. OUT UPON THE SEA; or. The Fights and Fancies 

of a British Tar. 

9. DOWN IN THE MINES; or. Leaves from the Journal 

of a Collier. 

10. OVER THE ROCKY MOUNTAINS; or, The Strong- 

hold of the Savage. 

11. UP THE NILE ; or. The Land of Egypt. 

12. DIGGING FOR GOLD; or. Adventures in California, 

13. THE CANNIBAL ISLANDS; or. Sights and Scenes 

in one of the Dark Places of the Earth. 

14. HUNTING THE LIONS; or. The Land of the Negro. 
16. THE SEA-KING; A Norse Tale of the Olden Time, 


£TC. 


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CONTENTS. 

I 

PAOB 

Chapter I. — The Hunter 7 

II. — The Three Friends 11 

III. — The Encampment , 19 

rV. — M osquitoes — Camp-Fire Talk ... 27 

i 

V. — Journeying in the Wilderness ... 34 

VI. — The Outpost 46 

VII. — A Savage Family, and a Fight with 

A Bear ^ 

VIII. — Running the Falls — Wild Scenes and 

Men 73 

IX. — The Fort, and an unexpected Meeting 88 

X. — Buffalo-Hunting on the Prairies . 100 

XL — Winter — Sleeping in the Snow — A 

Night Alarm 112 

\Ii. —The Wedding, an Arrival, a Feast, 

AND V Ball 126 

Aill.—IaE CoNCLUsiOff : • • .... 186 


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AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


CHAPTER I. 

THE HUNTER. 

/ a beautiful summer evening, not many 
years ago, a man was seen to ascend tbe 
side of a little mound or hillock, on the top 
of which he lingered to gaze upon the wild 
scenery that lay stretched out before him. 

The man wore the leathern coat and leg- 
gings of a North American hunter, or trap- 
per, or backwoodsman; and well did he 
deserve all these titles, for Jasper Derry was 
known to his friends as the best hunter, the 
most successful trapper, and the boldest 
man in the backwoods. 

Jasper was big and strong as well as bold, 
but he was not a bully. Men of true courage 
are in general peacefully disposed. Jasper 
could fight like a lion when there was occa- 
sion to do so ; but he was gentle and grave, 
and quiet by nature. He was also extremely 

( 7 ) 


8 AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 

good-humored ; had a low soft voice, and, 
both in mind and body, seemed to delight in 
a state of repose. 

We have said that his coat was made of 
leather; the moccasins or Indian shoes on 
his feet were made of the same mater iaL 
When Jasper first put them on they were 
soft like a glove of chamois leather, and 
bright yellow ; but hard service had turned 
them into a dirty brown, which looked more 
businesslike. The sun had burned his face 
and hands to as deep a brown as his coat. 
On his head he wore a little round cap, 
which he had made with his own hands, 
after having caught the black fox that sup- 
plied the fur, in one of his own traps. A 
colored worsted belt bound his coat round 
his waist, and beneath the coat he wore a 
scarlet flannel shirt. A long knife and a 
small hatchet were stuck in the belt at his 
back, and in front hung a small cloth bag, 
which was so thickly ornamented with beads 
of many colors, that little of the cloth could 
be seen. 

This last was a fire-bag — so called because 
it contained the flint, steel, and tinder re 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS 


9 


quired for making a fire. It also contained 
Jasper’s pipe and tobacco — for be smoked, 
as a matter of course. Men smoke every- 
wbere-^more’s the ^pity — and Jasper fol- 
lowed the example of those around him. 
Smoking was almost bis only fault. He was 
a tremendous smoker. Often, when out of 
tobacco, be bad smoked 4;ea. Frequently be 
had tried bark and dried leaves ; and once, 
when bard pressed, be bad smoked- oakum. 
He would ratber have ^one. without bis. sup- 
per than without bis -pipe I A powder-born 
and shot-pouch were slung over bis shoulders 
by two cross belts, and be carried a long 
single-barrelled gun. 

I have been thus particular in describing 
Jasper Derry, because be is our- hero, and 
be is worth describing, being a fine, hearty, 
handsome fellow, who cared as little for a 
wild Indian or a grizzly bear as be did for a 
butterfly, and who was one of the best of 
companions, as be was one of the best of hunt- 
ers, in the wilderness. 

Having gained the ' top of the hillock, 
Jasper placed the butt of his long gun on 
the ground, and, crossing bis bands over the 


10 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS 


muzzle, stood there for some time so motion- 
less, that he might have been mistaken for a 
statue. A magnificent country was spread 
out before hiip. Just in front lay a clear lake 
of about a mile in extent, and the evening 
was so still that every tree, stone, and bush 
on its margin, was reflected as in a mirror- 
Here, hundreds of wild ducks and wild 
geese were feeding among the sedges of the 
bays, or flying to and fro mingling their 
cries with those of thousands of plover and 
other kinds of water-fowl that inhabited the 
place. At the lower end of this lake a small 
rivulet was seen to issue forth and wind its 
way through woods and plains like a silver 
thread, until it was lost to view in the far 
distance. On the right and left and behind, 
the earth was covered with the dense foliage 
of the wild- woods. 

The hillock on which the western hunter 
stood, lay in the very heart of that great 
uncultivated wilderness which forms part of 
the British possessions in North America. 
This region lies to the north of the Canadas, 
is nearly as large as all Europe, and goes by 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


11 


the name of the Hudson^ s Bay Territory, or 
Eupert’s Land. 

It had taken Jasper many long weeks of 
hard travel by land and water, in canoes and 
on foot, to get there ; and several weeks of 
toil still lay before him ere he could attain 
the object for which his journey had been 
undertaken. 

Wicked people say that woman is at the 
bottom of alLmischief !” Did it never occur 
to these same - wicked individuals, that 
woman is just as much at the-bottom of all 
good ? Whether for good or for evil, woman 
was at the -bottom of Jasper Derry’s heart 
and affairs. The cause of his journey was 
love ; the aim and end of it was marriage I 
Did 'true love ever run smooth? ‘‘No, 
never,” says the proverb. We shaU see. 


CHAPTEE II. 

THE THREE FRIENDS. 

W HEN the hunter had stood for full 
five minutes gazing at the beautiful 


12 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


scenery by wbicli be was surrounded, it sud- 
denly occurred to bim that a pipe would 
render bim mucb moie capable of enjoying 
it ; so be sat down on tbe trunk of a fallen 
tree, leaned bis gun on it, pulled tbe fire-bag 
from bis belt, and began to fill bis pipe, wbicb 
was one of tbe kind used by tbe savages of 
tbe country, with a stone bead and a wooden 
stem. It was soon lighted, and Jasper was 
thinking how mucb more clear and beautiful 
a landscape looked through tobacco smoke, 
when a band was laid lightly on bis shoulder. 
Looking quickly round, be beheld a tall 
dark-faced Indian standing by bis side. 

Jasper betrayed neither alarm nor surprise ; 
for tbe youth was bis own comrade, who bad 
merely come to tell bim that tbe canoe in 
wbicb they bad been travelling together, and 
wbicb bad been slightly damaged, was re- 
paired and ready for service. 

” Why, Arrowhead, you steal on me with 
tbe soft tread of a fox. My ears are not dull, 
yet I did not bear your approach, lad.” 

A smile lighted up tbe countenance of tbe 
young Indian for a moment, as be listened to 
a compliment wbicb gratified bim mucb ; but 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


13 


the grave expression which was natural to 
him instantly returned, as he said, ‘^Arrow- 
head has hunted in the -Rocky Mountains 
where the men -are treacherous; he has 
learned to tread lightly there.” 

“No doubt, ye had need to be always on 
the lookout, where there are such varmints ; 
but hereaway. Arrowhead, there are no foes 
to fear, and therefore no need to take yei^ 
friends by surprise. But ye’re proud o’ your 
gifts, lad, an’ I suppose it’s natural to like 
to show them off. Is the canoe ready ?” 

The Indian replied by a nod. 

“ That’s well, lad, it will be sun-down in 
another hour, an’ I would like to camp on 
the point of pines to-night ; so come along.” 

“Hist!” exclaimed the Indian, pointing to 
a flock of geese which came into view at that 
moment. 

“Ah! you come of a wasterful race,” said 
Jasper, shaking his head gravely, “you’re 
never c'Sjntent when ye’ve got enough, but 
must always- be killing God’s creatures right 
and left for pure sport. Haven’t we gol one 
gray goose already for supper, an’ that’s 
enough for two men surely. Of course I 
2 


l4 AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 

make no account o’ the artist, poor cratur’, 
for lie eats next to nothin’. Hows’ever, as 
your appetite may be sharper set than usual, 
I’ve no objection to bring down another for 

ye.” 

So saying the hunter apd the Indian 
crouched behind a bush, and the former, 
while he cocked his gun and examined the 
priming, gave utterance to a series of cries 
so loud and discordant, that any one who 
was ignorant of a hunter’s ways must have 
thought he was anxious to drive all the liv- 
ing creatures within six miles of him away 
in terror. Jasper had no such wish, however. 
He was merely imitating the-^cry of the wild 
geese. The birds, which were at first so far 
off that a rifle-ball could not have reached 
them, no sooner heard the cry of their friends 
(as they doubtless thought it), than they 
turned out of their course, and came gradu- 
ally towards the bush where the two men lay 
hidden. 

The hunter didLnot cease to cry until the 
birds were within gun-shot. Then he fixed 
his eye on one of the flock that seemed plump 
and fat. The long barrel of the gun was 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


15 


q'lickly raised, the geese discovered their 
mistake, and the whole flock were thrown 
into wild confusion as they attempted to 
sheer off; but it was too late. Smoke and 
fire burst from the bush, and an enormous 
gray goose fell with a heavy crash to the 
ground. 

“ What have you shot ? what have you 
shot ?” cried a shrill and somewhat weak 
voice in the distance. 'In another moment 
the owner of the voice appeared^ running 
eagerly towards the two men. 

^‘Use your eyes, John Heywood, an’ ye 
won’t need to ask,” said Jasper, with a quiet 
smile, as he carefully re-loaded his gun. 

‘‘ Ah ! I see — a gray swan — no, surely, it 
cannot be a goose ?” said Heywood, turning 
the bird over and regarding it with astonish- 
ment ; “ why, this is the biggest one I ever 
did see.” 

^AVhat’s yon in the water? Deer, I do 
beliet^,” cried Jasper, quickly drawing the 
small shot from his gun and putting in a ball 
instead. Come, lads, we shall have venison 
for supper to-night. That beast can’t reach 
t’other side so soon as we can.” 


16 AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 

Jasper leaped quickly down the liill, and 
dashed through the bushes towards the spot 
where their canoe lay. He was closely fpl- 
ipwed by his companions, and in less than 
two minutes they were darting across the 
lake in their little Indian canoe, which was 
made of birch bark, and was so light that 
one man could carry it easily. 

While they are thus engaged I will intro- 
duce the reader to John Heywood. This 
individual was a youth of nineteen or twenty 
years of age, who was by profession a painter 
of landscapes and animals. He was tall and 
slender in person, with straight black hair, 
a pale haggard-looking face, an excitable 
nervous manner, and an 'enthusiastic tem- 
perament. Being adventurous in his dis- 
position, he had left his father’s home in 
Canada, and entreated his friend, Jasper 
Derry, to take him along with him into the 
wilderness. At first Jasper was very unwil- 
ling to agree to this request; because the 
young artist was utterly ignorant of every- 
thing connected with a life in the woods, and 
he could neither use a paddle or a gun. But 
Heywood’s father had done him some service 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


17 


at a time when he was ill and in difficulties, 
so, as the youth was very anxious to go, he 
resolved to repay this good turn of the father 
by doing a kindness to the son. 

Heywood turned out but a poor back- 
woodsman, but he proved to be a pleasant, 
amusing companion, and as Jasper and the 
Indian were quite sufficient for the manage- 
ment of the light canoe, and the good gun 
of the former was more than sufficient to 
feed the party, it mattered nothing to Jasper 
that Heywood spent • most of his time seated 
in the middle of the canoe, sketching the 
scenery as they went along. Still less did 
it matter that Heywood missed everything 
he fired at, whether it was close at hand or 
far away. 

At first Jasper was disposed to look upon 
his young companion as a poor useless crea- 
ture; ^nd the Indian regarded him with 
undisguised contempt. But after they had 
been some time in his company, the opinions 
of these two men of the woods changed ; for 
they found that the artist was wise, and well 
informed on many subjects of which they 
were extremely ignorant; and they beheld 
2 * 


18 AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 

with deep admiration the beautiful and life- 
like drawings and paintings which he pro- 
duced in rapid succession. 

Such was the romantic youth who had, 
for the sake of seeing and painting the wil- 
derness, joined himself to these rough sons 
of the forest, and who now sat in the centre 
of the canoe swaying his arms about and 
shouting with excitement as they quickly 
drew near to the swimming herd of deer. 

Keep yourself still,” said Jasper, looking 
over his shoulder, “yehl upset the canoe if 
ye go on like that.” 

Give me the axe, give me the axe, I’ll 
kill him!” cried Hey wood. 

“Take your pencil and draw- him,” ob- 
served the hunter, with a quiet laugh. “Kow, 
Arrowhead, two good strokes of the paddle 
will do — there — so.” 

As he spoke the canoe glanced up along- 
side of an affrighted deer, and in the twink- 
ling of an eye Jasper’s long knife was in its 
heart, and the water was dyed with blood. 
This happened quite near to the opposite 
shore of the lake, so that in little more than 
half an hour after it was killed the animal 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


li 


was cut up and packed, and the canoe was 
again speeding towards the upper end of the 
lake, where the party arrived just as night 
began to fling its dark mantle over the wil- 
derness. 


CHAPTEK III. 

THE ENCAMPMENT. 

/DAMPING- out in the woods at night is 
^ truly a delightful thing, and the pleas- 
antest part of it, perhaps, is the lighting of 
the fire. Light is agreeable to human eyes 
and cheering to the human heart. Solomon 
knew and felt that when he penned the 
words, A pleasant thing it is for the eyes 
to behold the sun.” And the rising of the 
sun is scarcely more grateful to the feelings 
than the light of a fire on a dark night. So 
our friends thought and felt, when the fire 
blazed up, but they were too busy and too 
hungry at the time to think about the state 
of their feelings. 

The India a was hungry. A good fire had 


20 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


to be made before the venison could be 
roasted, so he gave his whole attention to 
the felling of dry trees and cutting them up 
into logs for the fire. Jasper was also hun- 
gry, and a slight shower had wetted all the 
moss and withered grass, so he had enough 
to do to strike fire with flint and steel, catch 
a spark on a little piece of tinder, and then 
blow and coax the spark into a flame. 

The artist was indeed free to indulge in a 
little meditation ; but he had stumbled in the 
dark on landing, and bruised his shins, so 
he could only sit down on a rock and rub 
them, and feel miserable. 

But the fire soon caught; branches were 
heaped up, great logs were piled on, forked 
tongues of flame began to leap up and lick 
the branches of the overhanging trees. The 
green leaves looked rich and warm ; the 
thick stems looked red and hot; the faces 
and clothes of the men seemed as if about 
to catch fire as they moved about the en- 
campment preparing supper. In short, the 
whole scene was so extremely comfortable, 
in reality, as well as in appearance, that 
Hey wood forgot his bruised shins, and be- 
gan to rub his hands with delight. 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


21 


In a very short time ^hree juicy venison 
steaks were steaming before the three travel- 
lers, and in a much shorter time they had 
disappeared altogether, and were replaced 
by three new ones. The mode of cooking 
was very simple. Each steak was fixed on 
a piece of stick and set up before the fire to 
roast. When one side was ready, the artist, 
who seemed to have very little patience, 
began to cut off pieces and eat them, while 
the other side was cooking. 

To say truth, men out in those regions 
have usually such good appetites that they 
are not particular as to the cooking of their 
food. Quantity, not quality, is what they 
desire. They generally feel very much like 
the Eussian, of whom it is said, that he 
would be content to eat sawdust if only he 
got plenty of it! The steaks were washed 
down with tea. There is no^other drink- in 
Eupert’s Land. The Hudson’s Bay Com- 
pany found that spirits were so hurtful to 
the Indians that they refused to send them 
into the country; and at the present day 
there is no strong drink to be had for love 
or money over the length and breadth of 


22 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


their territories, except at those places where 
other fur-traders oppose them, and oblige 
them, in self-defence, to sell fire-water, as 
the Indians call it. 

Tea is the great — the -only — drink in-Eu- 
pert’s Land! Yes, laugh as you will, ye 
lovers of gin, and beer, and whisky, one who 
has tried it, and has seen it tried by hun- 
dreds of stout, stalwart men, tells you that 
the tee-totaller is the best man for real hard 
work. 

The three travellers drank their tea, and 
smacked their lips, and grinned at each other 
with great satisfaction. They could not have 
done more if it had been the best of brandy, 
and they the jolliest of topers 1 But the 
height of their enjoyment was not reached 
until the pipes were lighted. 

It was quite a sight to see them smoke ! 
Jasper lay with his huge frame extended in 
front of the blaze, puffing clouds of smoke 
thick enough to have shamed a small can- 
non. Arrowhead rested his back on the 
stump of a tree, stretched his feet towards 
the fire, and allowed the smoke to roll slowly 
through his nostrils as well as out at his 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


23 


mouth, so that it kept curling quietly round 
his nose, and up his cheeks, and into his 
eyes, and through his hair, in a most delight- 
ful manner ; at least so it would seem, for 
his reddish-brown face beamed with happy 
contentment. 

Young Hey wood did not smoke, but he 
drew forth his sketch-book, and sketched his 
two companions ; and in the practice of his 
beloved art, I have no doubt, he was happier 
than either. 

wonder how many trading-posts the 
Hudson Bay Company has got?” said Hey- 
wood, as he went on with his work. 

‘^Hundreds oY’em,” said Jasper, pressing 
the red-hot tobacco into the bowl of his pipe 
with the end of his little finger, as slowly 
and coolly as if his flesh were fire-proof. 

I don’t know, exactly, how many they’ve 
got. I doubt if anybody does, but they 
have them all over the country. You’ve 
seen a little of the country now, Heywood ; 
weij, what you have seen is very much like 
what you will see as long as you choose to 
travel hereaway. You come to a small 
clearing in the forest, with five or six log- 


24 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


houses in it, a stockade round it, and a flag- 
staff in the middle of it ; five, ten, or fifteen 
men, and a gentleman in charge. That’s a 
Hudson’s Bay Company’s trading-post. All 
round it lie the wild woods. Go through 
the woods for two or three hundred miles 
and you’ll come to another such post, or fort, 
as we sometimes call ’em. That’s how it is 
all the country over. Although there are 
many of them, the country is so uncommon 
big that they may be said to be few and far 
between. Some are bigger and some are 
less. There’s scarcely a settlement in the 
country worthy o’ the name of a village ex- 
cept Eed Eiver — ” 

^'Ah! Eed Eiver,” exclaimed Heywood, 
“ I’ve heard much of that settlement — hold 
steady, I’m drawing your nose just now — 
have you been there, Jasper ?” 

That have I, lad, and a fine place it is, 
extendin’ fifty miles or more along the river, 
with fine fields, and handsome houses, and 
churches, and missionaries, and schools, and 
what not; but the rest of Eupert’s Land is 
just what you have seen ; no roads, no 
houses, no cultivated fields — nothing but 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


2o 


lakes, and rivers, and woods, and. plains, 
without end, and a few Indians here and 
there, with plenty of wild beasts every- 
where. These -trading-posts are- scattered 
here and there, from the Atlantic to the Pa- 
cific, and from -Canada to the^ Frozen Sea, 
standin’ solitary-like in the midst of the wil- 
derness, as if they had dropped down from 
the clouds by mistake, and didn’t know ex- 
actly what -to do with themselves.” 

How long have de Company lived ?’' 
inquired - Arrowhead, turning suddenly to 
Jasper. 

The stout hunter felt a little put out. 

A-hem [ I don’t exactly know ; but it must 
have been a long time no doubt.” 

“ Oh, I can tell you that,” cried Heywood. 

^^You?” said Jasper in surprise. 

Ay ; the Co^m^an^was started nearly 
two -hundred years ago by Prince Kupert, 
who was the first Governor, and that’s the 
reason the country came to be called Eupert’s 
Land. You know its common name is ‘the 
Hudson’s Bay Territory,’ because it sur- 
rounds Hudson’s Bay.” 

‘‘ Why, where did you learn that ?” said 
8 


26 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


Jasper; I thought I knowed a-most every 
thing about the Company ; but I must con- 
•fess I never knew that about Prince Kupert 
before.” 

“ I learned it from books,” said the artist. 

** Books !” exclaimed Jasper, “ I never 
learned nothin’ from books — more’s the pity. 
I git along well enough in the trappin’ and 
shootin’ way without ’em ; but I’m sorry I 
never learned* to read. Ah! I’ve a great 
opinion of books — so I have.” 

The worthy hunter shook his head sol- 
emnly as he said this in a low voice, more to 
himself than to his companions, and he con- 
tinued to mutter and shake his head for some 
minutes, while he knocked the ashes out of 
his pipe. Having re-filled and re-lighted it, 
he drew his blanket over his shoulder, laid 
his head upon a tuft of grass, and continued 
to smoke until he fell asleep, and allowed the 
pipe to fall from his lips. 

The Indian followed his example, with 
this difference, that he laid aside his pipe, 
and drew the blanket over his head and 
under his feet, and wrapped it round him in 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


21 


sucli a way that he resembled a man sewed 
up in a sack. 

Heywood was thus compelled to shut his 
sketch-book ; so he also wrapped himself in 
his blanket, and was soon sound asleep. 

The camp-fire gradually sank low. Once 
or twice the end of a log fell, sending up a 
bright flame and a shower of sparks, which, 
for a few seconds, lighted up the scene again 
and revealed the three slumbering figures. 
But at last the fire died out altogether, and 
left the encampment in such thick darkness 
that the sharpest eye would have failed to 
detect the presence of man in that distant 
part of the lone wilderness. 


CHAPTEE ly. 

MOSQUITOES — CAMP-FIRE TALK. 

T he EE is a certain -fly in the American 
forests which is worthy of notice, be- 
cause it exercises a great -influence over the 
happiness of man in those regions. This fly 


28 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


is found in many-otber. parts of the world, 
but it swarms in immense numbers in Ame- 
rica, particularly in tbe swampy districts of 
that continent, and in the hot months of 
summer. It is called a mosquito — pro- 
nounced moskeeto^2JidL is, perhaps, the most 
tormenting, the most - persevering, savage, 
vicious, little monster on the-face of the-^earth. 
Other flies go to sleep at night, the mosquito 
never floes. Darkness puts flown other flies 
— it seems to 'encourage the mosquito. Day 
and night it persecutes man and beast, and 
the only time of the twenty-four hours in 
which it seems to rest is about noon, when 
the heat puts it down for a little. But this 
period of rest strengthens’ it for a renewal of 
war during the remainder of the day and 
night. In form the mosquito very much re- 
sembles the gnat, but is somewhat larger. 
His instrument of- torture is his -nose, which 
is quite as long as his body, and sharper 
than the finest needle. Being unable to rest 
because of the mosquitoes, Hey wood resolved 
to have a chat. 

^^Come, Jasper” said he, looking up into 
his commnion’s grave countenance, ^'al- 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


29 


though we have been many weeks on this 
journey now, you have not yet toldlae what 
has brought you here, or what the end of 
your trip is going to be.” 

^‘I’ve come here' a-hunting,” said Jasper, 
with the look and tone of a man who did not 
wish to be questioned. 

^‘ISTay, now, I know that is not the rea- 
son,” said Heywood, smiling; ^'you could 
have hunted much nearer home, if you had 
been so minded, and to as good purpose. 
Come, Jasper, you know I’m your friend, 
and that I wish you well. Let me hear what 
has brought you so .far into the wilderness 
• — mayhap I can give you some good advice 
if you do.” 

W ell, lad, I don’t mind if I do. Though, 
for the matter of good advice, I don’t feel 
much in need of any just at this time.” 

Jasper shook the ashes out of his pipe, and 
re-filled it as he spoke; then he shook his 
head once or twice and smiled, as if his 
thoughts amused him. Having lighted the 
pipe, he stretched himself out in a more 
comfortable- way before the blaze, and said — 
Well, lad. I’ll tell ye what it is — it’s the 
3 * 


30 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


old story ; the love of woman has brought 
me here.” 

‘'And a very good old story it is,” re- 
turned Hey wood, with a look of interest. 
“ A poor miserable set of creatures we should 
be without that^ame love of woman. Come, 
Jasper, I’m glad to hear you’re such a sen- 
sible fellow. I know something about that 
subject myself. - There’s a pretty, -blue-eyed 
girl, with golden hair, down away in Canada 
that”- — 

Heywood stopped short in his speech and 
sighed. 

“ Come, it aint a hopeless case, is it ?” 
said Jasper, with a look of sympathy. 

“ I rather fear it is ; but I hope not. Ah I 
what should we do without hope in this 
world ?” 

“ That’s true,” observed Jasper, with much 
gravity, “ we could not get on at all without 
hope.” 

“But come, Jasper,” said the artist, let’s 
hear about your affair, and I’ll tell you about 
mine some other time.” 

“Well, there is not much to tell, but I’ll 
give ye all that’s of it. You must know, 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


31 


then, that about two years ago I was in the 
service of the Hudson’s Bay Company, at 
one o’ their out-posts in the McKenzie’s River 
district. We had little to eat there and little 
to do, and I felt so lonesome, never seein’ a 
human bein’ except the four or five men at 
the fort anl a few Indians, that I made up 
my mind to quit. I had no reason to com- 
plain o’ the Company, d’ye see. They al- 
ways treated me handsomely, and it was no 
fault o’ theirs that the livin’ in that district 
was poor and the post lonesome. 

“Well, on my way down to Lake Winni- 
peg, I fell in with a brigade o’ boats goin’ to 
the Saskatchewan district, and we camped 
together that night. One o’ the guides of 
the Saskatchewan brigade had his daughter 
with him. The guide was a French-Cana- 
dian, and his wife had been a Scotch half- 
caste, so what the daughter, was is more than 
I can-tell; but I know what she* looked like. 
She just looked like an -angel. It wasn’t so 
much that she was pretty, but she was so 
sweet, and so quiet lookin’, and sodnnocenti 
W ell to cut the matter short, I fell in love 


32 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


at once. D’j® know what it is. Hey wood, 
to fall in love at first sight ?” 

“Oh! don’t I?” replied the artist with 
sudden energy. 

“An’ d’ye know,” continued Jasper, “what 
it is to be fallen-in-love-with, at first sight?” 

“Well, no. I’m not so sure about that,” 
replied Heywood, sadly. 

“ I do, then,” said Jasper, “ for that sweet 
critter fell in love with me right off — though 
what she saw in me to love has puzzled me 
much.} Howsoever, she did, and for that 
I’m thankful. Her name is Marie Laroche. 
She and I opened our minds to each other 
that night, and I took the guide, her father, 
mto the woods, and told him I wanted his 
daughter; and he was agreeable; but he 
would not hear of my takin’ her away then 
and there. He told me I must go down to 
Canada and get settled, and when I had a 
house to put his daughter in, I was to come 
back into the wilderness here and be married 
to her, and then take her home — so here I 
am on my way to claim my bride. Bui 
there’s one thing that puzzles me sorely.” 

“ What is that ?” asked Heywood. 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


33 


'^I’ve never ieard from -Marie from that 
day to4his,” said Jasper. 

That is -strange,” replied the other ; but 
perhaps she cannot write.” 

That’s true. Now you speak of it, I do 
believe she can’t write a line ; but, then, she 
might have got some one to write for her.” 

‘^Did you leave your address with her?” 

How could I, when I had no address to 
leave ?” 

“ But did you ever .send it to her ?” 

'' No, I never thought of that,” said Jasper, 
opening his eyes very wide. ‘‘ Come, that’s 
a comfort— ^that’s a good- reason for never 
havin’ -heard from her. Thankee, lad, for 
puttin’ memp to it. And, now, as we. must 
be up and -away in another hour. I’ll finish 
my nap.” 

So saying, Jasper put out his pipe and 
once more drew his blanket over him. Hey- 
wood followed his -example, and while he 
lay there gazing up at the ^stars through the 
trees, he heard the worthy hunter muttering 
to himself, That’s it ; that-accounts for my 
not -bearin’ from- her.” 

A sigh followed the words very soon a 


34 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


snore followed the sigh, and ere many 
minutes had passed away, the encampment 
was again buried in darkness and repose. 


CHAPTER Y. 

JOURNEYING IN THE WILDERNESS. 

I T seemed to Heywood that he had not 
been asleep more than five minutes, when 
he was aroused by Jasper laying his heavy 
hand on his shoulder. On rubbing his eyes, 
and gazing round him, he found that the 
first streak of dawn was visible in the east- 
ern sky, that the canoe was already in the 
water, and that his companions were ready 
to embark. 

It is usually found that men are not dis- 
posed to talk at that early hour. Heywood 
merely remarked that it was a fine morning, 
to which Jasper replied by a nod of his head. 
'N’othing more was said. The artist rolled 
up his blanket in a piece of oiled-cloth col- 
V.cted his drawing materials, and put them 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


35 


into their bag, got into his place in the centre 
of the canoe, and immediately went to sleep, 
while Jasper and the Indian, taking their 
places in the bow and stern, dipped the pad- 
dles into the water, and shot away from the 
shore. They looked mysterious and ghostly 
in the dim morning light; and the whole 
scene around them looked mysterious, and 
ghostly, too, for the water in the lake seemed 
black, and the shores and islands looked like 
dark shadows, and a pale, thin mist rolled 
slowly over the surface of the water, and 
hung overhead. 'No sound was heard, ex- 
cept the light plash of the paddles, as the 
two backwoodsmen urged their little canoe 
swiftly along. 

By degrees the light of day increased, and 
Jasper awakened Heywood, in order that he 
might behold the beautiful scenery through 
which they passed. They were now ap- 
proaching the upper end of the lake, in 
which there were innumerable islands of 
every shape and size — some of them not 
more than a few yards in length, while some 
were two or three hundred yards across, but 
•ill were clothed with the most beautiful 


86 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


green foliage and shrubbery. As the pale 
yellow of the eastern sky began to grow red, 
ducks and -gulls bestirred themselves. Early 
risers among them first began to chirp, and 
scream, and whistle their morning song, — 
for there are lazy ones among the birds, just 
as there are among men. Sometimes, when 
the canoe rounded a point pf rock, a flock 
of geese were found floating peacefully among 
the sedges, sound asleep, with their heads 
under their wings. These would leap into 
the air and fly off in great alarm, with much 
difficulty and tremendous splutter, remind- 
ing one of the proverb, “ The more haste the 
less speed.” At other times they would 
come upon a flock of ducks so suddenly that 
they had no time to take wing, so they dived 
instead, and thus got out of the way. 

Then the yellow hue of sunrise came a 
good while before the sun himself rose. 
The last of the bright stars were put out by 
the flood of light, and multitudes of little 
birds on shore began to chirp their morning 
song ; and who can say that this was not a 
hymn of praise to God, when, in the Holy 
Bible itself, in the 150th Psalm, we find it 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


37 


written, ^‘Let everything that hatli biearth 
praise the Lord?” 

At last the sun burst forth in all his golden 
glory. Water, earth, and sky glowed as if 
they had been set on fire. What a blessed 
influence the sun has upon this world ! It 
resembles the countenance of a loving father 
beaming in upon his family, driving away 
clouds, and diffusing warmth and joy. 

The birds were now all astir together, inso- 
much that the air seemed alive with them. 
There are small white gulls, with red legs 
and red beaks, in those large inland lakes, 
just as there are on the ocean. These began 
to utter their sweet, wild cries so powerfully 
that they almost drowned the noise of all 
the rest. Yet the united chorus of the whole 
was not harsh. It was softened and mel- 
lowed by distance, and fell on the ears of 
the two hunters as pleasantly as the finest 
music does in the ears of men trained to 
sweet sounds from infancy. 

Not until the sun had ascended a consider- 
able way on its course through the sky, did 
Jasper think it necessary to lay down hi5 
paddle. By that time the upper end of the 
4 


38 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


lake had been reached, and the hunter ran 
the canoe close to a ledge of fiat rock, and 
jumped ashore, saying that it was time for 
breakfast. 

‘‘1 had almost got to believe I was in 
paradise,” said Heywood, as he stepped 
ashore. 

I often think there’s a good deal of the 
garden of Eden still left in this world,” re- 
plied Jasper, as he carried the kettle up to 
the level part of the rock, and began to 
kindle a fire, while the Indian, as usual, 
hewed the wood. If we could only make 
use of Grod’s gifts instead of abusin’ them, 
I do believe we might be very happy all our 
days.” 

“ See there, Jasper, is one of the birds I 
want so much to get hold of. I want to 
make a drawing of him. Would you object 
to spend a shot on such game ?” 

Heywood pointed as he spoke to a gray 
bird, about the size of a blackbird, which 
sat on a branch close above his head. This 
creature is called by the fur- traders a whisky- 
John, and it is ^ne of the most -impudent 
little;birds in the world I Wherever you 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


39 


go throughout the country, there you find 
whisky- Johns ready to -receive and- welcome 
you, as if they -were the -owners of the soil. 
They are perfectly Tearless ; they will come 
and sit on a branch within a yard of your 
hand, when you are eating, and look at you 
in the most inquisitive manner. If they' 
could speak, they could not say more -plainly, 

What have you got-there ? — give me some!” 
If you leave the mouth of your provision- 
sack open they are sure, to jump into it. 
When you are done- eating they will scarcely 
let you- six yards away before they make a 
dash at the -crumbs; and if you throw sticks 
or stones at them, they will hop out of the 
way, but they will not -take to flight! 

‘‘It would be a pity to waste powder on 
them critters,” said Jasper, “but I’ll catch 
one for- you.” 

As he said this he took a few crumbs of 
broken meat from the bottom of the pro- 
vision-sack and spread them on his right 
hand ; then he lay down under a bush, cov- 
ered his face with a few leaves, and thrust 
out his hand. Heywood and the Indian 


40 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


retired a few paces and stood still to await 
the result. 

In a few seconds a whisky-John came 
flying towards the open hand, and alighted 
on a branch within a yard of it. Here he 
shook his feathers and looked very bold, but 
suspicious, for a few minutes, turning first 
one eye towards the hand, and then the 
other. After a little he hopped on a branch 
still nearer, and, seeing no motion in the 
hand, he at last hopped upon the palm and 
began to peck the crumbs. Instantly the 
fingers closed, and Jasper- caught him by the 
toes, whereupon the whisky- John began to 
scream furiously with rage and terror. But 
I am bound to say there was more of rage 
than terror in his cry. 

Jasper handed the passionate bird over to 
the artist, who tried to make a portrait of 
him, but he screamed and pecked so fiercely 
that Heywood was obliged to let him go 
after making a rough sketch. 

Breakfast was a repetition of the supper 
of the night before ; it was soon disposed of, 
^nd the three travellers again set forth. This 
time Jasper sang one of the beautiful canoe- 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


41 


songs peculiar to that country, and Hey wood 
and Arrowhead, both of whom had good 
voices, joined in the chorus. 

They soon passed from the lake into the 
river by which it was fed. At first the cur- 
rent of this river was sluggish, but as they 
ascended, it became stronger, and was broken 
here and there by rapids. 

The severe toil of- travelling in the back- 
woods noW' began. To paddle on a level 
lake all day is easy enough, for, when you 
get tired, you can lay down the paddle and 
rest. But in the river this is impossible, 
because of the current. The only way to 
get a rest is to push the bow of the canoe 
ashore. It was a fine sight to see the move- 
ments of Jasper and the Indian when they 
came to the first rapid. Heywood knew that 
he could be of no use, so, like a wise man, 
he sat still and looked on. . 

The rapid was a very strong one, but 
there were no falls in it ; only a furious gush 
of water over the broken bed of the river, 
where many large rocks rose up and caught 
the current, hurling the water back in white 
foam. Any one who knew not what tnese 

4 * 


42 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


hunters could do, would have laughed if you 
had told him they were about to ascend that 
rapid in such an egg-shell of a canoe ! 

They began by creeping up, in-shore, as 
far as they could. Then they dashed boldly 
out into the stream, and the current whirled 
them down with lightning speed, but sud- 
denly the canoe came to a halt in the very 
middle of the stream ! Every rock in a 
rapid has a long tail of still water below it ; 
the canoe had got into one of these tails or 
eddies, and there it rested securely. A few 
yards higher up there was another rock, 
nearer to the opposite bank, and the eddy 
which tailed off from it came down a little 
lower than the rock behind which the canoe 
now lay. There was a furious gush of water 
between them and this eddy, but the men 
knew what the canoe could bear, and their 
nerves were strong and steady. Across they 
went like a shot. They were swept down to 
the extreme point of the eddy, but a few 
powerful strokes of the paddle sent them 
into it, and next moment they were floating 
behind the second rock, a few yards higher 
up the stream. 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


43 


Thus they darted from rock to rock, gain- 
ing a few yards at each dart, until at last 
they swept into the smooth water at the 
head of the rapid. ' 

Many a time was this repeated that day, 
for rapids were numerous; their progress 
was therefore slow. Sometimes they came 
to parts of the river where the stream was 
very strong, but deep, and not broken by 
rocks, so that they had no eddies to dart 
into. In such places Arrowhead and Hey- 
wood walked along the bank and hauled the 
canoe up by means of a line, while Jasper 
remained in it to steer. This was hard work, 
for the banks in places were very steep, in 
some parts composed of soft mud, into which 
the men sank nearly up to their knees, and 
in other places covered so thickly with 
bushes that it was almost impossible to force 
a path through them. Jasper and the Indian 
took the steering-paddle by turns, and when 
Heywood required a rest he got into his 
place in the middle of the canoe ; but they 
never halted for more than a few minutes at 
a time. All day they paddled and dragged 
the canoe slowly up> against the strong cur- 


44 AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 

rent, and when night closed in they found 
they had advanced only three miles on their 
journey. 

The last obstacle they came to that day 
was a roaring waterfall about thirty feet 
high. Here, it might have been thought, 
was an effectual check to them at last. 
Nothing without wings could have gone up 
that waterfall, which filled the woods with 
the thunder of its roar; but the canoe had 
no wings, so what was to be done ? 

To one ignorant of the customs of that 
country going on would have seemed impos- 
sible, but nothing can stop the advance of a 
back-woods voyager. If his - canoe won’t 
carry him, he carries his canoe! Jasper and 
his friends did so on the present occasion. 
They had reached what is called a portage 
or carrying-place, and there are hundreds of 
such places all over Eupert’s Land. 

On arriving at the foot of the fall, Hey- 
wood set off at once to a spot from which he 
could obtain a good view of it, and sat down 
to sketch, while his companions unloaded the 
canoe and lifted it out of the water. Then 
Jasper collected together as much of the bag- 
















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AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


45 


gage as lie could carry, and clambered up tbe 
bank with it, until he reached the still water 
at the top of the fall. Here he laid it down 
and returned for another load. Meanwhile 
Arrowhead lifted the canoe with great ease, 
placed it on his shoulders, and bore it to the 
same place. When all had been carried up, 
the canoe was launched into the quiet water 
a few hundred yards above the fall, the bag- 
gage was replaced in it, and the travellers 
were ready to continue their voyage. This 
whole operation is called making a jportage. 
It took about an hour to make this portage. 

Portages vary in dength and in numbers. 
In some rivers they are few and far between ; 
in others they are so .numerous that eight or 
twelve may have to be made in a day. 
Many of the portages are not more than an 
eighth of a mile in length, and are crossed 
for the purpose of avoiding a waterfall. Some 
are four or five, miles in extent, for many long 
reaches in the rivers are so. broken by falls 
and rapids, that the, voyagers find it their 
best plan to take * canoes and baggage on 
their backs and cut across country for several 
miles; thus they avoid rough places alto- 
gether. 


46 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


Jasper delayed starting for half an hour, 
in order to give Hejwood time to finish his 
sketch of the fall. It began to grow d^rk 
when they again embarked, so, after paddling 
up stream until a convenient place was found, 
they put ashore and encamped within sight 
of another waterfall, the roar of which, 
softened by distance, fell upon their ears all 
that night like the sound of pleasant music. 


CHAPTER YL 

THE OUTPOST. 

O N the morning of the second day after 
the events which I have described in 
the last chapter, our three travellers arrived 
at one of the solitary outposts belonging to 
^ne fur-traders. It stood on the banks of the 
river, and consisted of four small houses 
made of logs. It covered about an acre of 
ground, and its only defence was a w'all of 
wooden posts, about two inches apart, which 
completely surrounded the buildings. 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


47 


This fort is a -namesake of* mine,” said 
Jasper, when they first sighted it; '‘they 
call it Jasper’s House. I spent a day at it 
w^hen I was hereaway two years ago.” 

“ Who is in charge of it ?” asked Hey wood 

" A gentleman named- Grant, I believe,’ 
replied Jasper. “That white painted house 
in the middle of the square is his. The other 
house on the right, painted yellow, is where 
the men live. Mr. Grant has only got six 
men, poor fellow, to keep him company ; he 
seldom sees a new face here from one end of 
the year to the other. But he makes a trip 
once a year to the head post of the district 
with his furs, and that’s a sort of break to 
him.” 

“Are there -no -^women at the place?” in- 
quired the artist. 

“Only*two,” replied Jasper. “At least 
there were 4; wo w^hen I was here last ; they 
were the wives of -two of the men,- Indian 
women they_were, with-few brains, and little 
or nothin’ to say ; but they were useful crit- 
ters for all that, for they could make coats, 
and trousers, and moccasins, and mittens, 
and they were first rate cooks, -besides bein’ 


48 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


handy at almost every kind o’ work. They 
could even use the gun. I’ve heard o’ them 
bringin’ down a wild goose on the wing, 
when none o’ the men were at hand to let 
drive at the passing flock. I do believe 
that’s Mr. Grrant himself standin’ at the gate 
o’ the fort.” 

Jasper was right. The master of Jasper’s 
House, a big, hearty-looking man of about 
five-and-forty, was standing at the gate of 
his lonely residence, leaning against one of 
the door-posts, with his hands in his breeches 
pockets and a short pipe in his mouth. His 
summer employments had come to an end, — 
no Indians had been near the place for many 
weeks, and he happened to have nothing at 
that time to do but eat, smoke, and sleep ; 
which three occupations he usually attended 
to with much earnestness. Mr. Grant did 
not observe the canoe approaching from be- 
low, for at that time his attention was at- 
tracted to something up the river. Suddenly 
he started, took his pipe from his lips, and, 
bending forward, listened with deep, earnest 
attention. A faint murmur came floating 
down on the breeze, sending a thrill of-plea- 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


49 


sure to the heart of the solitary man, as well 
it might, for a new face was a rare sight at 
Jasper’s House. 

At last a loud shout rang through the 
forest, and five Indian canoes swept round a 
point of rocks, and came suddenly into view, 
the men tossing their paddles in the air, and 
sending rainbows of spray over their heads 
as they made for the landing-place. These 
were three or four families of Indians, who 
had come from a long hunting expedition, 
laden with rich furs. 

Their canoes, though small and light, could 
hold a wonderful quantity. In the foremost 
sat a young savage, with a dark-brown face, 
glittering black eyes, and stiff, black hair 
hanging straight down all round his head, 
except in frout, where it was cut short ofi* 
just above the eyes, in order to let his face 
appear. That fellow’s canoe, besides him- 
self, carried his - three, wives — he was a good 
hunter, and could -afford to have- three. Had 
he been a bad hunter, he would have had to 
content himself, poor fellow, with one ! The 
canoe also contained six or seven heavy packs 
of furs; a haunch of venison; six pairs of 
5 


50 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


rabbits; several ducks and geese; a lump 
of bear’s meat ; two little boys and a giri : 
a large tent made of deer-skins ; four or five 
tin kettles ; two or three dirty-looking dogs 
and a gun ; several hatchets and a few blan- 
kets ; two babies and a dead beaver. 

In short, there was almost no end to what 
that bark canoe could hold ; yet that Indian, 
with the stiff' black hair, could lift it off the 
ground, when empty, lay it on his shoulders, 
and carry it for miles through the forest. 
The other canoes were much the same as this 
one. 

In a few minutes they were at the bank, 
close under the fort, and about the same time 
Jasper and his friends leaped ashore, and 
were heartily welcomed by Mr. Grant, who 
was glad enough to see Indians, but was 
overjoyed to meet with white men. 

Glad to see you, Jasper,” cried Mr. Grant, 
shaking the hunter by the hand ; right glad 
to see you. It does good to a man to see an 
old friend like you turn up so unexpectedly 
Happy also to meet with you, Mr. Ileywood. 
It’s a pleasure I don’t often have to meet 
with a white stranger in this wilderness. 
Pray come with me to the house.” 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


51 


The fur trader turned to the Indians, and, 
saying a few words to them in their own lan- 
guage, led the way to his residence. 

Meanwhile, the Indians had tossed every- 
thing out of the canoes upon the bank, and 
the spot which had been so quiet and soli- 
tary half an hour before, became a scene of 
the utmost animation and confusion. While 
the- women were employed in .erecting- the 
tents, the men strode up to the hall of recep- 
tion, where Mr. Grant supplied them with 
tobacco and food to their hearts’ content. 

These natives, who,'Owing to the -reddish 
copper-color of their ^kins, are- called - red- 
men, — were dressed chiefly in clothes made 
of deer-skin ; cut much in the same fashion 
as the garments worn by Jasper Derry. The 
women wore short gowns, also made of 
leather, and leggings of the same material ; 
but it was noticeable that the women had 
leggings more ornamented with gay beads 
than those of the men, and they wore gaudy 
kerchiefs round their necks. 

These-women were-poor-looking creatures, 
liowever. They had a -subdued, humble- look, 
like -dogs that are used to. being -kicked, 


62 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


very different from the bold, free bearing of 
the men. The. reason of this was, that they 
were treated by the men more as beasts of 
burden than companions. Women among 
the North American Indians have a* hard 
time of it, poor creatures. While their lords 
and masters are out at the. chase, or idly 
smoking round the fire, the Indian women 
are employed in cutting firewood and draw- 
ing water. Of course, they do all the -cook- 
ing, and as the eating always continues, so 
the cooking -never stops. When these more 
severe labors are over, they employ their 
time in making and ornamenting coats, leg- 
gings, and moccasins — and very beautiful 
work they can turn out of their hands. On 
the voyage, the women use the paddle as 
well as the men, and, in journeying through 
the woods, they always carry or drag the 
heaviest loads. For all this they get few 
thanks, and often, when the husbands be- 
come jealous, they get severely beaten and 
kicked. 

It is always thus among savages ; and it 
would seem that, just in proportion as men 
rise from the savage to the civilized state 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


63 


they -treat their women - better. It is certain 
that when man embraces the blessed -gospel 
of Christ, and learns to dbllow the law of 
love, he -places woman not only on a level 
with himself, but even -nbove -himself, and 
seeks her. comfort and happiness- before he 
seeks his -own. 

Few of the Eed men of North America 
are yet -Christians, therefore they have no 
gallantry about them — no generous and chiv- 
alrousdeelings towards the weaker sex. Most 
of their women are down-trodden and de- 
graded. 

The first night at Jasper’s house was spent 
in smoking and talking. Here our friend 
Jasper Derry got -news of- Marie. To his 
immense -delight he . learned that she was 
well, and living with her-father at Fort Erie, 
near the plains, or prairies, as they are 
called, on the Saskatchewan Elver. A long 
journey still lay before our bold hunter, but 
that was nothing to him. He felt quite-satis- 
fied to- hear that the.- girl of his heart was 
well, and-still unmarried. / 

Next day the serious business ofitrading 
commenced at the outpost. 

5 * 


54 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


I should like to get that powder and ball 
before you begin to trade with the Indians, 
Mr. Grant,” said Jasper, after breakfast was 
concluded. I’m anxious to be off as soon as 
possible.” 

‘‘No, no, Jasper, I’ll not give you a single 
charge of powder or an ounce of lead this 
day. You must spend another night with 
me, my man ; I have not had half my talk 
out with you. You have no need to hurry, 
for Marie does not know you are coming, so 
of course she can’t be impatient.” 

Mr. Grant said this with a laugh, for he 
knew the state of Jasper’s heart, and under- 
stood why he was so anxious to hasten away. 

“ Besides,” continued the fur-trader, “ Mr. 
Heywood has not half finished the drawing 
of my fort, which he began yesterday, and I 
want him to make me a copy of it.” 

“ I shall be -delighted to do so,” said the 
artist, who was busily engaged in arranging 
his brushes and colors. 

“ Well, well,” cried Jasper, “I suppose I 
must submit. I fancy you have no objection 
to stop here another day. Arrowhead ?” 

The Indian nodded gravely, as he squatted 


AWAY IN THE WiiLDERNESS. 


55 


down on tlie floor and began to fill his 
pipe. 

“ That’s settled, then,” said Jasper, ‘^so 
I’ll go with you to the store, if you’ll allow 
me.” 

^^With all my heart,” replied the - fur- 
trader, who forthwith led the -way to the 
store, followed by the Indians with their 
packs of furs. 

Now, the store or shop, at a Hudson’s Bay 
trading-post, is a most interesting and curious 
place. To the Indian, especially, it is a sort 
of -ench anted -ohamber, out of which can be 
obtained -everything -known - under the sun. 
As there can be only one shop or store at a 
trading-post, it follows that that shop must 
contain a few -articles out of almost- every 
other -style of shop in the world. Accord- 
ingly, you will find- collected within the four 
walls of that little room, knives and guns 
from Sheffield, cotton webs from Manchester, 
grindstones from Newcastle, tobacco from 
Virginia, and every sort of thing from I 
know not where all ! You can buy a - blan- 
ket or a file, an axe or a pair of trousers, a 
pound of sugar or a barrel of nails, a roll 
of tobacco or a tin kettle, -*-everything, in 


56 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


short, that a Laan can think of or desire. 
'And yju can lJuy it, too, without money. 
Indeed, you must buy it without money, for 
there is not such a thing as money in the 
land. 

The trade is carried on entirely by barter, 
or exchange. The Indian gives the trader 
his furs, and the trader gives him his goods. 
In order to make the exchange fair and 
equitable, however, everything is rated by a 
certain standard of value, which is called a 
made-heaver in one part of the country, a cas- 
tore in another. 

The first man that stepped forward to the 
counter was a -chief. A big, coarse-looking, 
disagreeable man, but a first-rate hunter. 
He had two wives in consequence of his 
abilities, and the favorite wife now stood at 
his elbow to prompt, perhaps to caution, him. 
He threw down a huge pack of- furs, which 
the trader opened and examined with care, 
fixing the price of each skin, and marking 
it down with a piece of chalk on the counter 
as he went along. 

There were two splendid black bearrskins, 
two or three dozen martens, or sables, five. 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


57 


or six black foxes, and a great many silver 
foxes, besides cross and red ones. In addi- 
tion to these he had a number of minks and 
beaver-skins, a few otters, and sundry other 
furs, besides a few buflalo and deer-skins, 
dressed, and with the hair scraped off. These 
last skins are used for making winter coats, 
and also moccasins for the feet. 

After all had been examined and valued, 
the whole was summed up, and a number of 
pieces of stick were handed to the chief — 
each stick representing a castore ; so that 
he "knew exactly how much he was- worth, 
and proceeded to choose, accordingly. 

First he gazed earnestly at a huge thick 
blanket, then he counted his sticks, and con- 
sidered. Perhaps the memory of the cold 
blasts of winter crossed his mind, for he 
quickly asked how many castores it was 
worth. The trader told him. The proper 
number of pieces of stick were laid down, 
and the blanket was handed over. Next a 
gun attracted his eye. The -guns, sent out 
for the Indian -trade are very - cheap ones, 
with blue barrels and red stocks. They 
shoot pretty well, but are rather.-apt to burst. 


58 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


Indeed this fate had befallen the chiefs last 
gun, so he resolved to have another, and 
bought it. Then he looked earnestly for 
some time at a tin kettle. Boiled meat was 
evidently in his mi’^ ; but at this point his 
squaw plucked him by the sleeve. She 
whispered in his ear. A touch of generosity 
seemed to come over him, for he pointed to 
a web of bright scarlet cloth. A yard of this 
was. measured off, and handed to his spouse, 
whose happiness for the moment was com- 
plete — for squaws in Eupert’s Land, like the 
fair sex in England, are uncommonly fond 
of finery. 

As the chief proceeded, he became more 
cautious and slow in his choice. Finery 
tempted him on the one hand, necessaries 
pressed him on the other, and at this point 
the trader stepped in to -help him to decide; 
he . recommended, warned, and advised. 
Twine was to be got for nets and fishing- 
lines, powder and shot, axes for cutting his 
winter fire-wood, cloth for his own and his 
wives’^leggings, knives, tobacco, needles, 
and an endless variety of things which gra- 
dually lessened his little pile of sticks, until 


AWAY IN THE WILT ERNESS. 


59 


at last be reached the sticking-point, when 
all his sticks were gone. 

Now, . Darke je (that was the chief’s 
name), you’ve come to the end at last, and a 
goocL thing you have made of it this year,” 
said - Mr. Grant, in the Indian language. 
'^Have you got all you want?” 

^‘Darkeye wants bullets,” said the chief. 

^^Ah! to be ^ure. You shall have a lot 
of these for . nothing, and some- tobacco too,” 
said the trader, handing the gifts to the 
Indian. 

A look of satisfaction , lighted up the 
chief’s- countenance as he received the gifts, 
and made way for another Indian to open 
and display his pack of furs. But- Jasper 
wasv struck by a peculiar expression in the 
face of-Darkeye. Observing that he took up 
one of the bullets and showed it to another 
savage, our hunter edged near him to over- 
hear the- conversation. 

*'Do you ^e that ball?” said the chief, in 
a low tone. 

The Indian to whom he spoke- nodded. 

Jjook: here !” 

Darkeye put the bullet into his-mouth as 


60 


AWAy IN THE WILDERNESS. 


he spoke, and bit it until his strong. sharp 
teeth sank deep into the lead ; then, holding 
it up, he said, in the same low voice, “You 
will know it again ?” ■ ^3/ 

Once more the savage nodded, and a mali- 
cious- smile played on his face for a , moment. 

Just then Mr. Grant called out, “Come 
here, Jasper, tell me what you think this 
otter-skin is worth.” 

Jasper’s curiosity had been aroused by the 
mysterious ^conduct of Darkeye, and he 
would have given a good deal to have heard 
a little more of his conversation ; but, being 
thus called away, he was obliged to leave 
his place, and soon forgot the incident. 

During the whole of that day the trading 
of furs was carried . on much as I have now 
described it. ' Some of the Indians had large 
packs, and some had small, but all of them 
had sufficient to purchase such things as 
were necessary for themselves and their 
families during the approaching winter ; and 
as each man received from Mr. Grant a pre- 
sent of tobacco, besides a few trinkets of 
small value, they returned to the -Hall that 
night in high good humor. 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


61 


Next day, Jasper and his friends bade the 
hospitable trader farewell, and a few days 
after that the Indians left him. They smoked 
a farewell pipe, then struck their tents, and 
placed them and their packs of goods in the 
canoes, with their wives, children, and dogs. 
Pushing out into the stream, they com- 
menced the return journey to their distant 
hunting-grounds. Once more their shouts 
rang through the forest, and rolled over the 
water, and once more the paddles sent the 
sparkling drops into the air as they dashed 
ahead, round the point of rocks above the 
fort, and disappeared ; leaving the fur- trader, 
as they found him, smoking his pipe, with 
his hands in his pockets, and leaning against 
the door-post of his once-again silent and 
solitary home. 

CHAPTER YII. 

A SAVAGE FAMILY, AND A FIGHT WITH A 
BEAR. 

A bout a week after our travellers left 
the outpost. Arrowhead had an ad- 
6 


62 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


venture with a bear, which had well-nigh 
cut short his journey through this world, as 
well as his journey in the wilderness of 
Eupert’s Land. 

It was in the evening of a beautiful day 
when it happened. The canoe had got 
among some bad rapids, and, as it advanced 
very slowly, young Hey wood asked to be 
put on shore, that he might walk up the 
banks of the river, which were verj^ beauti- 
ful, and sketch. 

In half an hour he was far ahead of the 
canoe. Suddenly, on turning round a rocky 
point, he found himself face to face with a 
small Indian boy. It is probable that the 
little fellow had never seen a white man 
before, and it is certain that Heywood had 
never seen such a specimen of a -brown boy. 
He was clothed in skin, it is true, but it was 
the skin in which he had been born, for he 
had not a stitch of clothing on his fat little 
body. 

As the man and the boy stood staring at 
each other, it would have been difficult to 
say which opened his eyes widest with 
amazement. At first Heywood fancied the 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


63 


Qrcliin was a wild .beast of some sort on two 
legs, but a second glance convinced him that 
he was a real boy. The next thought that 
occurred to the artist was, that he would try 
to sketch him, so he clapped his hand to his 
pocket, pulled out his book and pencil, and 
forthwith began to draw. 

This terrified the little fellow so much, that 
he turned about and- fled howling into the 
woods. Heywood thought of giving chase, 
but a -noise attracted his attention at that 
moment, and, looking across the river, he 
beheld the boy’s father in the same-cool dress 
as his son. The man had been fishing, but 
when he saw that. strangers were passing, he 
threw his blanket round him, jumped into 
his canoe, and crossed over to meet them. 

This turned out to be a. miserably poor 
family of ^Indians, consisting of the father, 
mother, three girls and a boy, and a few ill- 
looking dogs. They all lived together in a 
little tent or wigwam, made partly of skins 
and partly of birch-bark. This tent was 
shaped like a cone. The fire was kindled 
inside, in the middle of the floor. A hole in 
the side served for a door, and a hole in the 


64 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


top did duty for. window and chimney. The 
family kettle hung above the fire, and the 
family circle sat around it. A'dirtier family 
and filthier tent one could not wish to see. 
The fainer was a poor weakly man and a bad 
hunter ; the squaw was thin, wrinkled, and 
very dirty, and the children were all sickly- 
looking, except the boy before mentioned, 
who seemed to en^oy more than his fair 
share of health and rotundity. 

/‘Have ye got anything to eat?” inquired 
Jasper, when the canoe reached the place. 

They had not got much, only a few fish 
and an owl. 

“Poor miserable critters,” said Jasper, 
throwing them a goose and a lump of veni- 
son; “see there — that’ll keep the wolf out 
<v’^yer insides for some time. Have ye got 
anything to smoke?” 

Ho, they had nothing to smoke but°i few 
dried leaves. 

“Worse and worse,” cried Jasper, pulling 
a large plug of tobacco from tha breast of 
his coat ; “ here, that’ll keep you puffin’ for 
a short bit, anyhow.” 

Heywood, although no smoker himself, 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


65 


carried a small supply of tobacco just to give 
away ta Indians, so he -added two or three 
plugs to Jasper’s -gift, and Arrowhead gave 
the father a few charges of -powder and shot. 
They then stepped into their canoe, and 
pushed off with that feeling of light-hearted 
happiness which always follows the doing of 
a kind action. 

There’s- bears up the river,” said the 
Indian, as they were leaving. 

Have ye seen them ?” inquired Jasper. 

Ay, but could not Ehoot — no powder, no 
ball. Look out for them !” 

‘‘That willJ,” replied the hunter, and in 
another moment the canoe was out among 
the rapids again, advancing slowly up the 
river. 

In about an hour afterwards they came to 
a part of the river where the banks were 
high and steep. Here Jasper landed to look 
for the tracks of the bears. He soon found 
these, and as they appeared to be fresh, he 
prepared toTollow them up. 

“We may as well encamp here,” said he 
to Arrowhead; “you can go and look for 
the bears. I will land the baggage, and 
6 * 


66 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


haul up the canoe, and then take my gun and 
follow you. I see that our friend Hey wood 
is at work with his pencil already.” 

This was true. The keen artist was so 
delighted with the scene before him, that the 
moment the canoe touched the land he had 
jumped out, and, seating himself on the trunk 
of a fallen tree, with book and pencil, soon 
forgot everything that was going on around 
him. 

Arrowhead shouldered his gun and went 
away up the river. Jasper soon finished 
what he had to do, and followed him, leaving 
Heywood seated on the fallen tree. 

How the position which Heywood occupied 
was rather^ dangerous. The tree lay on the 
edge of an overhanging bank of clay, about 
ten feet above the water, which was deep and 
rapid at that place. At first the young man 
sat down on the tree-trunk near its root, but 
after a time, finding the position not quite to 
his mind, he changed it, and went close to 
the edge of the bank. He was so much oc- 
cupied with his drawing, that he did not ob- 
serve that the ground on which his feet rested 
actually overhung the -stream. As his 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 67 

weight rested on the fallen tree, however, he 
remained there safe enough and busy for 
half an hour. 

At the end of that time he was- disturbed 
by a -noise in the bushes. Looking up, he 
beheld a large brown bear coming-^ straight 
towards .him. Evidently the bear did not 
see him, for it was coming, slowly and lazily 
along, with a quiet meditative expression on 
its face. The appearance of the animal was 
so sudden and -unexpected, that poor -Hey- 
wood’s- heart almost- leaped into his- mouth. 
His face grew deadly -pale, his long hair 
almost rose on his head with terror, and he 
was utterly unable to move hand or foot. 

In another moment the bear was within 
three yards of him, and, being taken by sur- 
prise, it immediately ^^rose on its hind legs, 
which is the custom of bears when about to 
make or receive an attack. It stared for a 
moment at the horrified artist. 

Let not m}?- reader think that Heywood’s 
feelings were due to cowardice. The bravest 
of men have been panic-stricken when taken 
by. surprise. The young man had never 
seen a bear before except in a cage, and the 


t58 AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 

cilfference between a caged and a free bear is 
very great. Besides, when a rough-looking 
monster of this kind comes unexpectedly on 
a man who is -unarmed, and has no chance 
of 'escapC^^-and rises on its hind legs, as if to 
let him have a full view of its enormous size, 
its great- strength, and its ugly- appearance, 
he may well be -excused for feeling a little 
uncomfortable, and looking somewhat un- 
easy. 

When the bear rose, as I have said, Hey- 
wood’s courage returned. His first act was 
to fling his sketch-book in Bruin’s face, and 
then, uttering a loud yell, he ^sprang to his 
feet, intending to run away. But the vio- 
lence of his action broke off the earth under 
his feet. He dropt into the river like a lump 
of lead, and was whirled' away in a moment. 

What that bear thought when it saw the 
man vanish from the spot like a ghost, of 
course I cannot tell. It certainly looked sur- 
prised, and, if it was a bear of ordinary 
sensibility, it must undoubtedly have felt 
astonished. At any rate, after standing there, 
gazing for nearly a minute in mute amaze- 
ment at the spot where Hey wood had disap 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


69 


peared, it let itself -down on its fore-legs, 
and, turning round, walked slowly- back into 
the bushes. 

Poor Hey wood could not -swim, so the river 
lid what it -pleased with him. After- sweep- 
ing him out into the middle of the stream, 
and rolling him -over five or six times, and 
whirling him round in an -eddy close to the 
land, and dragging him out , again into the 
main current, and sending him- struggling 
down a -rapid, it threw him at last, like a 
bundle of old clothes, on a -shallow, where 
he managed to get on his feet, and- staggered 
to the -shore in a most melancholy plight. 
Thereafter he -returned to the- encampment, 
like a. drowned rat, with his long hair plas- 
tered to his thin face, and his soaked gar- 
ments clinging tightly to his slender body. 
Had he been able to -see himself at that mo- 
ment, he would have- laughed, but, not being 
able to see. himself, and feeling very misera- 
ble, he sighed and - shuddered with cold, and 
theft set to work to kindle a fire and dry 
himself. 

Meanwhile the bear continued its walk up 
the river. Arrowhead, after a time,-lost the 


70 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


track of the hear he was in search of and 
believing that it was too late to follow it up 
farther that night, he turned about, and be- 
gan to retrace his steps. Not long after that, 
he and the bear met face to face. Of course 
the Indian’s gun was levelled in an instant, 
but the meeting was so sudden that the aim 
was not so true as usual, and, although the 
ball mortally wounded the animal, it did not 
kill him outright. 

There was no time to re-load, so Arrow- 
head dropped his gun and ran. He-^ doubled 
as he ran, and made for the encampment; 
but the bear ran faster. It was soon at the 
Indian’s heels. Knowing that farther flight 
was useless. Arrowhead drew the hatchet 
that hung at his belt, and, turning round, 
faced the infuriated animal, which instantly 
rose on its hind legs and- closed with him. 

The Indian met it with a tremendous blow 
of his axe, seized it by the throat with his 
left hand, and endeavored to repeat the 
blow.* But brave and powerful though he 
was, the Indian wa5 like a mere child in the 
paw of the bear. The axe descended with 
* See Frontispiece. 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 71 

a crash on the monster’s, head, and sank into 
its skull. ( But bears are notoriously hard 
to kill. This one scarcely seemed to feel the 
blow. I N^xt instant Arrowhead was down, 
and, with its claws fixed in the man’s back, 
the bear held him down, while it began to 
gnaw the fleshy part of his left shoulder. 

No cry escaped from the prostrate hunter. 
He determined to lie perfectly still, as if he 
were dead, that being his only chanca of 
escape ; but the animal was furious, and 
there is little doubt that the Indian’s brave 
spirit would soon have fled, had not God 
mercifully sent Jasper Derry to his relief. 

That stout hunter had been near at hand 
when the-shot was fired. He at once ran in 
the direction whence the sound came, and 
arrived on the scene of the struggle just as 
Arrowhead- fell. Without a moment’s hesi- 
tation he dropped on one knee, took a, quick 
but careful aim, and fired. The ball entered 
the bear’s head just behind the ear and rolled 
it over dead ! 

Arrowhead’s first act, on was to 

seize the hand of his deliverer and in a tone 
of deep feeling exclaimed, brother I” 


72 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


Ay,” said Jasper, with a quiet smile, as 
he reloaded his gun; ‘‘this is not the first 
time that you and I have helped one another 
in the nick of time. Arrowhead ; We shall be 
brothers, and good friends to boot, I hope, 
as long as we live.” 

“ Good,” said the Indian, a smile lighting 
up for one moment his usually grave features. 

“But my brother is wounded, let me see,” 
said* Jasper. 

“It will soon be well,” said the Indian, 
carelessly, as he took off his coat and sat 
down on the bank, while the white hunter 
examined his wounds. 

This was all that was said on the subject 
by thesC' two men. They were^ used to dan- 
ger in every form, and had often saved each 
other from . sudden death. The Indian’s 
wounds, though painful, were trifling. Jas- 
per dressed them in -silence, and then, draw- 
ing his long hunting-knife, he skinned and 
cut up the bear, while his companion lay 
down on the bank, smoked his pipe, and 
looked on. Having cut off’ the best parts of 
the carcass for supper, the hunters returned 
to the canoe, carrying the skin along with 
them. 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


73 


CHAPTEE yill. 

RUNNING THE FALLS — WILD SCENES AND 
MEN. 



EXT day the travellers reached one of 


^ those magnificent lakes of which there 
are so many in the wild, woods of North 
America, and which are so like to the- great 
ocean itself, that it is scarcely -possible to 
believe them to be - bodies of fresh water 
until they are tasted. 

The ‘largest of these inland -seas is the 
famous-Lake Superior, which is so-enormous 
in size that ships can sail on its broad bosom 
for several days out of sight of land. It is 
upwards of three hundred, miles long, and 
about-one hundred and fifty- broad. A good 
idea of its size may be formed from the fact, 
that it is large enough to contain the whole 
of -Scotland, and deep enough to cover her 
highest hills ! 

The lake -on which the canoe was now 
launched, although not so large as Superior, 
was, nevertheless, a respectable body of 
water, on which the sun was shining as if on 


7 


74 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


a shield of bright, silver. There were num- 
bers of small islets scattered over its surface ; 
sbme thickly wooded to the water’s edge, 
others little better than bare rocks. Cross- 
ing this lake, they came to the mouth of a 
pretty large stream and began tO’ ascend it. 
The first thing they saw on rounding a bend 
in the stream was an Indian tent, and in 
front of this tent was an Indian baby, hang- 
ing from the branch of a tree. 

Let not the reader be horrified. The child 
was not hanging by the neck, but by the 
handle of its cradle, which its mother had 
placed there, to keep her little one out of the 
way of the dogs. The Indian. cradle is a 
very simple contrivance. A young mother 
came out of the tent with her^child just as 
the canoe arrived, and began to -pack it in 
its cradle. Jasper stopped for a few -minutes 
to converse with one of the, Indians, so that 
the artist had a good opportunity of witness- 
ing the whole operation. 

The cradle was simply a piece of flat 
board, with a bit of scarlet cloth JasteneJ 
down each side of it. First of all, the mother 
laid the poor infant, which was quite naked 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS 


75 


sprawling on the ground. A dircy-looking 
dog took^ advantage of this to sneak forward 
and smell at it, whereupon the mother seized 
a heavy piece of wood, and hit the dog such 
a rap over the nose as sent it away howling. 
Then she spread a thick layer of soft moss 
on the wooden board. Above this she laid 
a very neat small blanket, about two feet in 
length. Upon this she placed the baby, 
which objected at first to go to bed, squalled 
a good deal, and kicked a little. The mother 
therefore d;ook it up,. turned it over, gave it 
one or two hearty slaps, and laid it down 
again. 

This seemed to quiet it, for it - afterwards 
lay straight- out, and perfectly still, with its 
coal-black eyes staring out of its fat brown 
face, as if it was -astonished at receiving such 
rough treatment. The mother next spread 
a little moss over the child, and above that 
she placed another small blanket, which she 
folded and tucked in very comfortably) keep- 
ing the little one’s.- arms -close to its sides, 
and packing it.all up, from. neck to- heels, so 
tightly that it looked more like the making 
up of a parcel than the wrapping up of a 


76 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


child. Thisdone, she drew the scarlet cloth 
over it from each side of the cradle, and 
laced it down the front. When all was done, 
the infant looked like an Egyptian mummy, 
nothing but the head being visible. 

The mother then leaned the cradle against 
ihe stem of a tree, and immediately one of 
the dogs ran against it, and knocked it over. 
Luckily, there was a wooden bar attached to 
the cradle, in front of the child’s face, which 
bar is placed there on purpose to guard 
against injury from such accidents, so that 
the bar came first to the ground, and thus 
prevented the flattening of the child’s nose, 
which, to say truth, was flat enough already! 

Instead of scolding herself for her own 
carelessness, the Indian mother scolded the 
dog, and then hung the child on the branch 
of a tree to keep it from farther mischief. 

The- next turn in the river revealed a large 
waterfall, up which it was impossible to 
paddle, so they prepared to make a portage. 
Before arriving at the foot of it, however, 
Jasper landed Heywood to enable him to 
make a sketch and then the two men shoved 
off, and -proceeaed to the foot of the fall. 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


77 


They were lying there in an eddy con- 
sidering where was the best, spot to- land, 
when a loud -shout drew their^ attention to- 
wards the rushing water. Immediately after, 
a boat was seen to hover for a moment on 
the brink of the ..waterfall. This fall, al- 
though about ten or fifteen feet high, had 
such a large body of ..water • rushing over it, 
that the _river, instead of falling straight 
down, gushed over in a steep incline. Dowu 
this incline the boat now- darted with the 
speed of lightning. It was full of .men, two 
of whom stood prect, the one in the bow, the 
other in the stern to control the* movements 
of the boat. 

For a few seconds there was a deep-silence. 
The men held their breath as the boat leaped 
along with the boiling -flood. There was a 
curling whiter-wave at the foot of the fall. 
The boat cut through this like a knife, 
drenching her .-crew with spray. Next mo- 
ment she.-swept round into the eddy where 
the canoe was floating, and the men gave 
vent to a loud cheer of satisfaction at having 
run the fall in safety. 

But this was not the end of that exciting 
7 ^* 


78 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNE&S. 


scene. Scarcely had they gained the land, 
when another boat appeared on the crest of 
the fall. Again a shout was given and a 
dash made. For one moment there was a 
struggle with the raging flood, and then a 
loud cheer as the second boat swept into the 
eddy in safety. Then a third and a fourth 
boat went through the same operation, and 
before the end of a quarter of an hour, six 
boats ran the fall. The bay at the foot of it, 
which had been so quiet and solitary when 
Jasper and his friends arrived, became the 
scene of the wildest confusion and noise, as 
the men ran about with tremendous activity, 
making preparations to spend the night there. 

Some hauled might and main at the boats; 
some carried up the provisions, frying-pans, 
and kettles ; others cut down dry trees with 
their axes, and cut them up into logs from 
five to six feet long and as thick as a man’s 
thigh. These were intended for six great 
fires, each boat’s crew requiring a fire to 
themselves. 

While this was going on, the principal 
guides and steersmen crowded round our 
three travellers, and plied them with ques- 








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AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


79 


tions; for it was sO'-nmisual to meet with 
strangers in that far-off wilderness, that a 
chance meeting of this kind was regarded as 
quite an important event. 

“ You’re bound for York Fort, no doubt,” 
said Jasper, addressing a tall handsome man 
of between forty and fifty, who w^as the prin- 
cipal guide. 

Ay, that’s the end of our journey. You 
see we’re taking our furs down to the coast. 
Have you come from Y"ork Fort, friend?” 

'‘No, I’ve come all the way from Canada,” 
said Jasper, who thereupon gave them a short 
account of his voyage. 

"Well, Jasper, you’ll spend the night 
with us, won’t you?” said the guide. 

" That will I, right gladly.” 

" Come, then, I see the-fires are beginning 
to burn. We may as well have a pipe and 
a chat while supper is getting ready.” 

The night was ^now closing in, and the 
scene in the forest, when the. camp-fires be- 
gan to.blaze, was one of the most stirring and 
romantic sights that could be witnessed in 
that land. The men of the brigade were 
some of them French-Canadians, some natives 


80 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


of the Orkney Islands, who had been hired 
and sent out there by the Hudson’s Bay 
Company, others were half-breeds, and a few 
were pure Indians. They were all dressed 
in what is called voyageur costume — coats or 
capotes of blue or gray cloth, with hoods to 
come over their heads at night, and fastened 
round their waists with scarlet worsted belts ; 
corduroy or gray trousers, gartered outside 
at the knees, moccasins and caps. But most 
of them threw ofi* their coats, and appeared 
in blue and red striped cotton shirts, which 
were open at the throat, exposing their broad, 
sun -burned, hairy chests. There was variety, 
too, in the caps — some had - Scotch bonnets, 
others red nightcaps, a few had tall hats, 
ornamented with gold and silver cords and 
tassels, and a good many wore no covering 
at all, except their own thickly matted Bair. 
Their faces were burned to every shade of 
red, brown, and black, from constant ex- 
posure, and they were as. strong as lions, wil?^ 
as zebras, and frolicsome as kittens ! 

It was no wonder, then, that Heywood got 
into an extraordinary state of excitement and 
delight as he beheld tht'.se wild fine-looking 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


81 


men smoking their pipes and cooking their 
suppers, sitting, lying, and standing, talking 
and singing, and laughing, with teetk glisten- 
ing and eyes glittering in the red blaze of 
the fires—each of which .fires was big enough 
to have roasted a whole ox ! 

The young artist certainly made good use 
of his opportunity. He went about from fire 
to fire, sketch-book in hand, sketching all 
the best-looking men in every possible atti- 
tude, sometimes -singly, and- sometimes in 
groups of-five or six. He then -went to the 
farthest end of the encampment, and, in the 
light of the last fire, made a, picture of all the 
rest. 

The kettles were soon . steaming. These 
hung from tripods erected over the fires. 
Their contents were flour and pemican, made 
into a thick soup called Eubbiboo. 

As pemican is a kind of food but little 
known in this country, I may as well de- 
scribe how it is made. In the first place, it 
consists of buffalo meat. The great, plains, 
or prairies, of America, which are like huge 
downs or commons hundreds of miles in ex- 
tent aftbrd grass sufiicient to support count- 


82 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


less herds of deer, wild horses, and bisons 
The bisons are called by the people there 
buffaloes. The buffalo is somewhat like an 
enormous ox, but its hind quarters are 
smaller and its fore quarters much larger 
than those of the ox. Its hair is long and 
shaggy, particularly about the neck and 
shoulders, where it becomes almost a mane. 
Its horns are thick and short, and its look is 
very ferocious, but it is in reality a timid 
creature, and will only turn to attack man 
when it is hard pressed and cannot escape. 
Its flesh is first-rate for food, even better 
than beef, and there is a large .hump on its 
shoulder, which is considered the best part 
of the animal. 

Such is the bison, or buffiilo, from which 
pemican is made. 

When a man wishes to make a bag of 
pemican, he first of all kills a buffalo — not 
an easy thing to do by any means, for the 
buffalo runs well. Having killed him, he 
skins him and cuts up the meat — also a 
difficult thing to do, especially if one is not 
used to that sort of work. Then he cuts the 
meat into thin lajmrs, and hangs it up to 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


83 


d^3^ Dried meat will keep for a long time. 
It is packed np in kales and sent Rbout that 
country to be used asibod. The next thing 
to be done is to make a bag of the raw hide 
of the buffalo. Thiff is done with a glover’s 
needle, the raw sinews of the animal being 
used instead of thread. The bag is usually 
about . three feet long, and eighteen inches 
broad, and the hair is left on the outside of 
it. A huge. pot is now put on the fire, and 
the fat of the buffalo is melted down. Then 
the dried meat is pounded between two 
stones, until it is. torn and broken up into 
shreds, after which it is put into the bag, 
the melted fat is poured over it, and the 
whole is well mixed. The last operation is 
to sew up the mouth of the bag and leave it 
to cool, after which the pemican is ready for 
use. 

In this state a bag of . pemican will keep 
fresh and good for-years. When the search 
was going on in the. polar regions for the 
lost ships of Sir John .Franklin, one of the 
parties hid some pemican in the ground, 
intending to return and take it up. They 
returned home, however, another way. Five 


84 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


years later some travellers discovered this 
pemican, and it was found, at that time, to 
be fit for food. Pemican is extensively used 
throughout Eupert’s Land, especially, during 
summer, for at that season the brigades of 
boats start from hundreds of inland trading- 
posts to take the furs to the coast for ship- 
ment to England, and pemican is^ found to 
be not only the best of food for these hard- 
working men, but exceedinglyxonvenient to 
carry. 

Supper finished, the wild-looking fellows 
of this brigade took to their pipes, and threw 
fresh logs on the fires, which roared and 
crackled and shot up their forked tongues 
of flame, as if they wished to devour the 
forest. Then the song and the story went 
round, and men told of terrible fights with 
the red men of the prairies, and, desperate 
encounters with grizzly bears in the Eocky 
Mountains, and narrow escapes among the 
rapids and falls, until the night- was half 
spent. Then, one by one, each man wrapped 
himself in his blanket, stretched himself on 
the ground with his feet towards the fire and 
his head pillowed on a coat or a heap of 
brushwood, and went to sleep. 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


85 


Ere long they were all -down, except one 
or two -long-winded story-tellers, who went 
on muttering to their pipes after their com- 
rades were asleep. Even these became tired 
at last of the sound of their own voices, and 
gradually every noise in the camp was 
hushed, except the crackling of the .fires as 
they sank by degrees and went- out, leaving 
the place in dead silence and total darkness. 

With the first peep of dawn the guide 
arose. In ten minutes after his first shout 
the whole camp was astir. The men. yawned 
a good deal at first and grumbled a little, 
and - stretched themselves violently, and 
yawned again. But soon they -shook off 
laziness, and-sprang to their work. Pots, 
pans, kettles, and pemican bags were tossed 
into the. boats, and in the course of half-an- 
hour they were ready to continue the. voyage. 

Jasper stood beside the guide looking on 
at the busy scene. 

Heard you any news from the Saskatche- 
wan of late,” said he 

''Hot much?” replied the guide ; "there’s 
little stirring there just now, except -among 
the Indians, who have been- killing and 
8 


86 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


scalping, each other as usual. But, by the 
way, that reminds me there has been a sort 
of row between the Indians and the Com- 
pany’s peoplq^at Fort Erie.” 

“ Fort Erie 1” said Jasper with a start. 

'' Ay, that’s the name o’ the fort, if I re- 
member right,” returned the guide. “It 
seems that one o’ the men there, I think they 
call him Laroche — but what makes you 
start, friend Jasper? Do you know any- 
thing of this man ?” 

“Yes, he’s a friend of mine. Go on, let 
me hear about it.” 

“ Well, there’s not much to tell,” resumed 
the guide. “This Laroche, it would appear, 
has got into hot water. He has a daughter, 
a good-lookin’ wench, I’m told, and, better 
than that, a well-behaved one. One o’ the 
Indians had been impertinent to the girl, so 
old Laroche, who seems to be a fiery fellow, 
up fist, hit him on the nose, and knocked 
the savage flat on his back. A tremendous 
howl was set up, and knives and hatchets 
were flourished ; but Mr. Pemberton, who is 
in charge of Fort Erie, ran in and pacified 
them. The Indian that was floored vows 
he’ll have the hair off old Laroche’s head*” 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


87 


This taking the hair off -people’s heads, or 
scalping, as it is called, is a common„prac- 
tice among the North American Indians. 
Wlien a savage kills his enemy he. runs his 
scalping-knife round the dead man’s^head, 
seizes the hair with his left hand, and tears 
the scalp off*. Indeed this dreadful -cruelty, 
sometimes practised before death, has occur- 
red. The -scalp, with its lock of hair, is 
taken- home by the victor, and hung up in 
his tent as a. trophy of- war. The- man who 
can show the -greatest number of. scalps is 
considered the greatest warrior. The dresses 
of Indian warriors are usually-fringed with 
human scalp-locks. 

“ That’s a bad business,” said Jasper, who 
was concerned to. hear such news of his in- 
tended father-in-law. “ Do ye know the 
name o’ this red-skinned rascal ?” 

“I heard it mentioned,” said the guide, 
** but I can’t remember it at this moment.” 

“ The boats are ready to start,” said one 
of the steersmen, coming up just then. 

'‘Very good, let the men embark. Now, 
Jasper, we must part. Give us a shake o’ 
your hand. A pleasant trip to you.” 


88 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


‘‘ The .same to_ you, friend,” said Jasper 
returning the guide’s squeeze. 

In another minute the boats were away. 

•^Now, friends, we shalLstart,” said- Jas- 
per, breaking the deep silenee which followed 
the departure of the brigade. 

‘‘Good,” said -Arrowhead. 

“ I’m-.ready,” said Hey wood. 

The canoe was soon in the water, and the 
men in their places; but they. started that 
morning without a^song. Arrowhead was 
never inclined to be noisy, Heywood was 
sleepy, and Jasper was rendered anxious by 
what he had heard of his- friends at Fort Erie, 
so they paddled away in silence. 


CHAPTER IX. 

THE FORT, AND AN UNEXPECTED MEETING. 



7"E turn now to a V3ry different scene. 


* ” It is a small fort, or trading-post on 
the banks of a stream which flows through the 
prairie. The fort :s very much like the one 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


89 


which has been already described, but &ome- 
what .stronger ; and there are . four block- 
houses, orjbastions, one at each .corner, from 
which the muzzles of a few heavy guns may 
be seem protruding. 

The trees and - bushes have been- cleared 
away from around this fort, and the strips 
oh forest-land which run along both sides of 
the river are not so thickly wooded as the 
country through which the reader has hith- 
erto been '-travelling. - In front of the fort 
rolls the river. Immediately behind it lies 
the boundless .prairie, which extends like a 
sea of grass, with scarcely a tree or bush 
upon it, as far as the eye can reach. This is 
Fort Erie. 

You might -ride for many days over that 
prairie without seeing anything of the forest; 
except a clump of trees and bushes here and 
there, and now and then a little pond. The 
whole -region is extremely beautiful. One 
that ought to fill the hearts of men with ad- 
miration and love of the bountiful God who 
formed it. But men in those regions, at the 
time I write of, thought little of beauties 
of nature, and cared nothing for the good- 
8 * 


90 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


ness of God. At least this may be truly 
said of the red-skinned owners of the soil. 
It was otherwise with some of the, white peo- 
ple who dwelt there. 

Three weeks had passed away since the 
night spent by our friends with the. brigade. 
It was now a beautiful evening, a little after 
sunset. The day’s work at the fort had been 
finished, and the men were amusing them- 
selves by racing their horses, of which fine 
animals there were great numbers at Fort 
Erie. 

Just a little after the sun had gone down, 
three horsemen appeared on the. distant 
prairie, and came bounding at full gallop 
towards the fort. They were our friends, 
Jasper, Heywood, and Arrowhead. These 
adventurous travellers had . reached a fort 
farther down the river two days before, and, 
having been supplied with horses, had pushed 
forward by way of the plains. 

On entering the belt of woods close to the 
fort, the horsemen reined in, and rode among 
the trees more cautiously. 

“ Here’s the end of our journey at last,” 
cried Jasper on whose bronzed countenance 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


91 


there was a deep flush of excitement, and a 
look of, anxiety. 

Just as he said this, Jasper’s , heart ap- 
peared to_ leap into his throat and almost 
choked him. Pulling up suddenly, he swal- 
lowed his heart with some, difficulty, and 
said — 

“Hold on, lads. I’ll ride round to the 
fort by way of the river for reasons of my 
OAvn. Push on, Heywood, ivith the Indian, 
and let Mr. Pemberton knoiv I’m coming. 
See, I will ^ive you the packet of letters we 
were asked to carrj^ from the - fort below. 
Now, make haste.” 

Heywood,...though a little surprised at this 
speech, and at the manner of hiafriend, took 
the packet in -silence and rode swiftly away, 
followed by the Indian. When they were 
gone, Jasper -dismounted, tied his horse to a 
tree, and walked quickly into the woods in 
another direction. 

Now this mysterious proceeding is not 
difficult to explain. Jasper had caught sight 
of a female figure walking under the trees at 
a considerable distance from the spot where 
he had pulled up. He knew that there were 


92 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


none but Indian women at Fort Erie at that 
time, and that, therefore, the only respectably 
dressed female at the place must needs be 
his own Marie Laroche. Overjoyed at the 
opportunity thus unexpectedly afforded him 
of meeting her alone, he hastened forward 
with a beating heart. 

Marie was seated on the stump of a fallen 
tree when the hunter came up. She was a 
fair, beautiful woman of about five-and- 
twenty, with an air of modesty about her 
which attracted love, yet repelled familiarity. 
Man}^ a good-looking and well-doing young 
fellow had attempted to gain the heart of 
Marie during the last two years, but without 
success — for this good reason, that her heart 
had been gained already. 

She was somewhat startled when a man 
appeared thus suddenly before her. Jasper 
stood in silence for a few moments, with his 
arms crossed upon his breast, and gazed ear- 
nestly into her face. 

As he did not speak, she said — You ap- 
pear to be a stranger here. Have von arrived 
lately?” 

Jasper was for a moment astonished that 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


93 


slie did not at once • recognise him, and yet 
he had no reason to be surprised. Besides 
the alteration that two years sometimes 
makes in a man, Jasper had made a con- 
siderable-alteration on himself. When Marie 
last .saw him, he had been in the habit of 
practising theibolish and unnatural -custom 
of^ shaving ; and he had carried it to such an 
extreme that he shaved off everything — 
whiskers, beard, and moustache. But within 
a year he had been induced by a wise friend 
to change his opinion on this subject. That 
friend had suggested, that as-Providence had 
caused hair to grow on his cheeks^ lips, and 
chin, it was intended to be worn, and that 
he had no more right to shave his face than 
a Chinaman had to shave his head. Jasper 
had been so far convinced that he had suffered 
his whiskers to grow. These were now large 
and bushy, and had encroached so much on 
his- chin as to have become almost a beard. 
Besides this, not having shaved any part of 
his face during the last three weeks, there 
was little of it visible except his eyes, fore- 
head and cheek-bones. All the rest waa 
more or less covered with black hair. 


^4 


away in the wilderness. 


No wonder, then, that Marie, who believed 
him to be two thousand miles away at that 
moment, did not recognise him in the in- 
creasing darkness of evening. The lov,er at 
once understood this, and he resolved to 
play the part of a stranger. He happened to 
have the power of changing his voice — a 
power possessed by many people — and, 
trusting to the increasing gloom to conceal 
him and to the fact that he was the last per- 
son in the world whom Marie might expect 
to see there, he addressed her as follows : — 

‘‘I am indeed a stranger here; at least I 
have not been at the post for a very long 
time. I have just reached the end of a long 
journey.” 

Indeed,” said the girl, interested by the 
stranger’s grave manner. ^‘May I- ask 
where you have come from ?” 

“ I have come all the way from Canada, 
young woman, and I count myself lucky in 
meeting with such a pleasant face at the end 
of my journey.” 

^‘From Canada!” exclaimed Marie, be- 
coming still more interested in the stranger, 
and blushing deeply as she asked — “ You 
have friends thejpe, no doubt?” 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


95 


Ay, a few,” said Jasper. 

And what has ^brought you such a long 
way into this wild wilderness ?” asked Marie, 
sighing as she thought of the hundreds of 
miles that lay between Fort Erie and Canada. 

“I have come here to get me a wife,” re- 
plied Jasper. 

“That is strange,” said the girh smiling, 
“ for there are few but Indian women here. 
A stout hunter like you might find one 
nearer home, I should think.” 

Here Marie paused, for she felt that on 
such a -subject she ought not to -converse 
with a -stranger. Yet she could not help 
adding, “But perhaps, as you say you have 
been in this part of the world before, you 
may have-some one in your mind ?” 

“I am-engaged,” said Jasper abruptly. 

On hearing this, Marie felt more at her ease, 
and being of a very sympathetic nature, she 
at once courted the confidence of the stranger. 

“May I venture to ask her_name?” said 
Marie, with an arch smile. 

“I rn^' not tell,” replied Jasper; “I have 
a comrade who is entitled to know this secret 
before any one else. Perhaps you mayJiave, 


96 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


heard of him, for he was up in thes.e parts 
two years agone. His name is- Jasper -Derry.” 

The blood rushed to Marie’s temples on 
hearing the name, and she turned her face 
awa}^ to conceal her -agitation, while, in a 
low voice, she said — 

“Is Jasper Derry, then, your intimate 
friend?” 

“ That is he — a very intimate friend in- 
deed. But you appear to know him.” 

“Yes, I — I know him — I have seen him. 
I hope he is well,” said Marie ; and she list- 
ened with a beating heart for the answer, 
though she still turned her face away. 

“Oh! he’s well enough,” said Jasper; 
“ sickness don’t often trouble him. He’s 
going to be married.” 

Had a bullet struck the girl’s, heart she 
could not have turned more deadly pale than 
she did on hearing this. She half rose from 
the tree-stump, and would have-fallen to the 
ground insensible, had not Jasper caught her 
in his arms. 

“ My own Marie,” said he fervently, “for- 
give me, dearest ; forgive my. folly, my wick- 
edness, in deceiving you in this fashion. Oh, 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


97 


what a fool I ami” he added, as the poor 
girl still hung heavily in his grasp— speak 
to me, Marie, my own darling.” 

Whether it was the earnestness of his 
voice, or the kiss which he printed on her 
forehead, or the coolness of , the evening air, 
I know not, but -certain it is that Marie re- 
covered in the course of a few minutes, and, 
on being convinced that Jasper really was 
her old lover, she resigned herself,- wisely, to 
her fate, and held such an uncommonly long 
conversation with the bold hunter, that the 
moon was up and the stars were out before 
they turned their steps towards the Fort. 

“ Why, Jasper Derry,” cried- Mr. Pember- 
ton, as the hunter entered the hall of Fort 
Erie, “ where have you been? I’ve been ex- 
pecting you every moment for the last two 
hours.” 

“Well, you see, Mr. Pemberton, I just 
went down the river a short bit to see an old 
friend, and I was kept' longer than I ex- 
pected,” said Jasper, with a cool grave face, 
as he grasped and shook the hand which was 
held out to him. 

“Ah! I see, you hunters are more like 

9 


98 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


brothers than friends. No doubt you went 
to smoke a pipe with Hawkeye, or to have 
a chat with the Muskrat about old times,” 
said the fur-trader, mentioning the names of 
two Indians who were celebrated as being 
the best hunters in the neighborhood, and 
who had been bosom friends of Jasper when 
he resided there two years before. 

‘‘No, I’ve not yet smoked a pipe with 
Hawkeye, neither have I seen Muskrat, but 
I certainly have had a pretty long chat with 
one o’ my old friends,” answered Jasper 
while a quiet smile played on his face. 

“Well, come along and have a pipe and 
a chat with me. I hope you count me one 
of your friends too,” said Mr. Pemberton, 
conducting Jasper into an inner room, where 
he found Hey wood and Arrowhead seated at 
a table, doing justice to a splendid supper 
of buffalo-tongues, .venison-steaks, and mar- 
row-bones. “ Here are your comrades, you 
see, hard at work. It’s lucky you came to- 
night, Jasper, for I intend to be off to-mor- 
row morning, by break of day, on a buffalo- 
hunt. If you had been a few hours later of 
arriving I should have- missed you. Come 
will yon eat or smoke ?” 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


99 


“I’ll eat first, if you have no objection,” 
said Jasper, “ and smoke afterwards.” 

“ Yery good. Sit down, then, and get to 
work. Meanwhile, I’ll go and look after the 
horses that we intend to take with us to- 
morrow. Of course you’ll accompany us, 
Jasper ?” 

“I’ll be very glad, and so will Arrow- 
head, there. There’s nothing he likes so 
much as a chase after a buffiilo, unless, it 
may be, the -eating of him. But as for my 
friend and comrade Mr. Hey wood, he must 
speak for- himself.” 

“I will be delighted to go,” answered the 
artist, “nothing will give me more pleasure ; 
but I fear my steed is too much exhausted 
to”— 

“ Oh ! make your mind easy on that 
score,” said the fur-trader, interrupting him. 
“I have plenty of capital horses, and can 
mount the whole of you, so that’s settled. 
And now, friends, do justice to your supper, 
I shall be back before you have done.” 

So saying, Mr. Pemberton left the room, 
and our three friends, being unusually hun- 
gry, fell vigorously to work on the good 
cheer of Fort Erie. 


100 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


CHAPTER X. 

BUFFALO-HUNTING ON THE PRAIRIES. 

N ext day most of the men of Fort Erie, 
headed by Mr. Pemberton, rode away 
into the prairies, on a buffalo-hunt. Jasper 
would willingly have remained with Marie 
at the fort, but having promised to go, he 
would not now draw back. 

The band of horsemen rode for three 
hours, at a quick pace, over the grassy 
plains, without seeing anything. Jasper kept 
close beside his friend old Laroche, while 
Heywood rode and conversed chiefly with 
Mr. Pemberton. There were about twenty 
men altogether, armed with guns, and 
mounted on their best buffalo-runners, as 
they styled the horses which were trained 
to hunt the buffalo. Many of these steeds 
had been wild horses caught by the Indians, 
broken-in, and sold by them to the fur- 
traders. 

have seldom ridden so long without 
meeting buffaloes,” observed Mr. Pember- 
ton, as the party galloped to the top of a 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


101 


ridge of land from whicb they could see the 
plains far ano! wide around them. 

''There they are at last,” said Hey wood, 
eagerly, pointing to a certain spot on the far- 
off horizon, where living creatures of some 
sort were seen moving. 

" That must be a^band o’, red-skins,” said 
Jasper, who trotted up at this moment with 
the rest of the party. 

" They are -Sauteaux,”* observed Arrow- 
head, quietly. 

"You must have good eyes, friend,” said 
Pemberton, applying a small pocket-telescope 
to his eye; "they are indeed Sauteaux, I 
see by their dress, and they have observed 
us, for they are coming straight this way, 
like the wind.” 

"Will they come as enemies or friends?” 
inquired Hey wood. 

"As friends, I have no doubt,” replied 
the fur-trader. "Come, lads, we will ride 
forward to meet them.” 

In a short time the two parties of horse- 
men met. They approached almost at full 

* This word is pronounced Soti>es in the plural; 
Sotoe in the singular. 

9 * 


102 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


speed, as if each meant to ride the other 
down, and did not rein up until they were 
so close that it seemed impossible to avoid a 
shock. 

“Have you seen the buffaloes lately?” 
inquired Pemberton, after the first saluta- 
tion had passed. 

“ Yes, there are large bands not an hour’s 
ride from this. Some of our young warriors 
have remained to hunt. We are going to 
the fort to trade.” 

“ Good ; you will find tobacco enough 
there to keep you smoking till I return with 
fresh meat,” said Pemberton, in the native 
tongue, which he could speak like an In- 
dian. “I’ll not be long away. Farewell.” 

Ho more words were wasted. The traders 
galloped away over the prairie, and the In- 
dians, of whom there were about fifteen, 
dashed off in the direction of the fort. 

These Indians were a very different set 
of men from those whom I have already in- 
troduced to the reader in a former chapter. 
There are many tribes of Indians in the wil- 
derness of Kupert’s Land, and some of the 
tribes are at constant war t^th each other. 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


103 


But in order to avoid confusing the reader, 
it may be as well to-divide the Indian race 
into two great. classes-T-namely, those who 
inhabit the. woods, and those who -roam over 
the^plains or- prairies. As a general, rule, 
the thick- wood-Indians are a more peaceful 
set of -men than the - prairie Indians. They 
ara few in number, and-live in a land full of 
game, where- there is far more than- enough 
of room for -all of them. Their mode of 
travelling in canoes, and on foot, is slow, so 
that the different tribes do not often meet, 
and they have no-occasion to quarrel. They 
are, for the most part, a quiet and harmless 
race of savages, and being very dependent 
on theTur-traders for the necessaries of life, 
they are on their good behavior, and seldom 
do much -mischief. 

It is very -different with the plain-Indians, 
These-savages have numbers of fine horses, 
and live in a splendid open country, which 
is well stocked with deer and buffaloes, be- 
sides other game. They are bold riders, and 
scour over the, country in all directions con- 
sequently the different tribes often come 
across each other when out hunting. Quar- 


104 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


rels and fights are the results, so that these 
savages are naturally a fierce and warlike 
race. They are independent, too ; for although 
they get their -guns, and ammunition, and 
other necessaries from the traders, they can 
manage to live without these things, if need 
be. They can clothe themselves in the skins 
of wild animals, and when they lose their 
guns, or wet their powder, they can kill 
game easily with their own bows and ar- 
rows. 

It was a band of these fellows that now 
went galloping towards Fort Erie, with the 
long manes and tails of the half-wild horses, 
and the scalp-locks on their dresses, and their 
own long black hair streaming in the wind. 

Pemberton and his party soon came up 
with the young Indians who had remained 
to chase the bufiiiloes. He found them, shel- 
tered behind a little mound, making prepara- 
tion for an immediate attack on the animals, 
which, however, were not yet visible to the 
men from the fort. 

‘‘I do believe they’ve seen buffaloes on 
the other side of that mound,” said Pember- 
ton, as he rode forward. 

He was right. The Indians, of whom 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 105 

there were six, well mounted and armed 
with strong short bows, pointed to the 
mound, and said that on the other side of it 
there were hundreds of buffaloes. 

As the animals were so numerous, no 
objection was made to the fur-traders joining 
in the hunt, so in another moment the united 
party leaped from their horses and prepared 
for action. Some wiped out and carefully 
loaded their guns, others examined the prim- 
ing of their pieces, and chipped the edges 
off the flints to make sure of their not miss- 
ing fire. All looked to the girths of their 
saddles, and a few threw off their coats and 
rolled their shirt-sleeves .up to their should- 
ers, as if they were going to undertake hard 
and bloody work. 

Mr. Pemberton took in hand to look after 
our friend Heywood, the rest were well 
qualified to look after themselves. In five 
minutes they were all re-mounted and rode 
quietly to the brow of the mound. 

■ Here an interesting sight presented itself. 
The whole plain was covered with the huge 
anwieldly forms of the • buffaloes. They 
were scattered about, singly and in groups, 
grazing or playing or lying down, and in 


106 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


one or two places some of tbe bulls were 
engaged in single combat, pawing the earth, 
goring each other, and bellowing furiously. 

After one look, the hunters dashed down 
the hill and were in the midst of the aston- 
ished animals almost before they could raise 
their heads to look at them. ISTow com- 
menced a scene which it is not easy to 
describe correctly. Each man had selected 
his own group of animals, so that the whole 
party was scattered in a moment. 

'‘Follow me,” cried Pemberton to Hey- 
wood, "observe what I do, and then go try 
it yourself.” 

The fur-trader galloped at full speed to- 
wards a group of buffaloes which stood right 
before him, about two hundred yards off. 
He carried a single-barrelled gun with a flint 
lock in his right hand and a bullet in his 
mouth, ready to re-load. The buffaloes 
gazed at him for one moment in stupid sur- 
prise, and then, with a toss of their heads 
and a whisk of their tails, they turned and 
fled. At first they ran with a slow awkward 
gait, like pigs ; and to one who did notknow 
their powers, it would seem that the -fast- 
running horses of the two men would quickly 


AWAr IN THE WILDERNESS. 


107 


overtake them. But as they warmed to the 
work their speed increased, and it required 
the_ horses to get up their best paces to over- 
take them. 

After a furious gallop, Pemberton’s horse 
ran close up alongside of a fine-looking 
buffalo cow— so close that he could almost 
touch the side of the animal with the point 
of his gun. Dropping the rein, he pointed 
the gun without putting it to his shoulder, 
and fired. The ball passed through the ani- 
mal’s heart, and it dropped like a stone. At 
the same moment Pemberton flung his cap 
on the ground beside it, so that he might 
afterwards claim it as his own. 

The well-trained horse did not shy at the 
shot, neither did it check its pace for a mo- 
ment, but ran straight on and soon placed 
its master alongside of another buffalo cow. 
In the mean time, Pemberton loaded like 
lightning. He let the reins hang loose, 
knowing that the horse understood his work, 
and, seizing the powder-horn at his side with 
his right hand, drew the wooden stopper 
with his teeth, and poured a charge of 
powder into his left — guessing the quantity 
of course. Pouring this into the gun, he put 


108 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


the muzzle to his mouth, and- spat the ball 
into it, struck the butt on the pommell of 
the saddle 'ter send it down, as well as to 
drive the powder into the pan, and taking 
his chance of the gun priming itself, he aimed 
as before, and pulled the trigger. The ex- 
plosion followed, and a second buffalo lay 
dead upon the plain, with a glove beside it 
to show to whom it belonged. 

Scenes similar to this were being enacted 
all over the plain, with this difference, that 
the bad or impatient men sometimes fired 
too soon and missed their mark, or by only 
wounding the animals, infuriated them and 
caused them to run faster. One or two ill- 
trained horses shied when the guns were 
fired, and left their riders sprawling on the 
ground. Others stumbled into badger-holes 
and rolled over. The Indians did their work 
well. They were used to it, and did not 
bend their bows until their horses almost 
brushed the reeking sides of the huge brutes. 
Then they drew to the arrow heads, and, 
leaning forward, buried the shafts up to the 
feathers. The arrow is said to be even more 
deadly than the bullets 

Already the plain was strewn with dead 


A'^^AY IN THE WILDERNESS. 109 

or dying buffaloes, and the . ground seemed 
to tremble with the thunder of the tread of 
the affrighted animals. Jasper had '‘dropped” 
three, and Arrowhead had slain two, yet the 
pace did not slacken — still the work of death 
went on. 

Having seen Pemberton shoot another 
animal, Heywood became fired with a desire 
to try his own hand, so he edged away from 
his companion. Seeing a very large mon- 
strous-looking buffalo flying away by itself 
at no great distance, he turned his horse 
towards it, grasped his gun, shook the reins, 
and gave chase. 

Now poor Heywood did not know that the 
animal he had made up his mind to kill was 
a tough old bull ; neither did he know that 
a bull is bad to eat, and dangerous to follow ; 
and, worse than all, he did not know that 
when a bull holds his tail stiff' and straight 
up in the air, it is a sign that he is in a tre- 
mendous rage, and that the wisest thing a 
man can do is to let him alone. Heywood, 
in fact, knew nothing, so he rushed blindly 
on his fate. At first the bull did not raise 
his tail, but, as the rider drew near, he turned 
10 


110 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


his enormous shaggy head a little to one side, 
and looked at him out of the corner of his 
wicked little eye. When Heywood came 
within a few yards and, in attempting to take 
aim, fired off his gun by accident straight 
into the face of the sun, the tail went up and 
the bull began to growl. The ferocious 
aspect of the creature alarmed the artist, but 
he had made up his mind to kill it, so he at- 
tempted to re-load, as Pemberton had done. 
He succeeded, and as he was about to turn his 
attention again to the bull, he observed one of 
the men belonging to the fort . making to- 
wards him. This man saw and. knew the 
artist’s danger, and meant to warn him, but 
his horse unfortunately put one of its feet 
into a hole, and sent him flying head over 
heels through the air. Heywood was now 
so close to the bull that he had to prepare 
for another shot. 

The horse he rode was a thoroughly good 
buffalo-runner. It knew the dangerous cha- 
racter of the bull, if its rider did not, and 
kept its eye watchfully upon it. At last the 
bull lost patience, and, suddenly wheeling 
round, dashed at the horse, but the trained 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


Ill 


animal sprang nimbly to one side, and got 
out of the way. Hey wood was all but thrown. 
He clutched the mane, however, and held on. 
The bull then continued its flight. 

Determined not to be caught in this way 
again, the artist seized the reins, and ran the 
horse dose alongside of the buftalo, whose 
tail was now as stiff as a poker. Once more 
the bull turned suddenly round. Heywood 
pulled the reins violently, thus confusing his 
steed, which ran straight against the -buffalo’s 
big hairy forehead. It was stopped as vio- 
lently as if it had run against the side of a 
house. But poor Heywood was not stopped. 
He left the saddle like a rocket, flew right 
over the bull’s back, came down on his face, 
ploughed up the land with his nose — and 
learned a lesson from experience ! 

Fortunately the spot on which he fell hap- 
pened to be one of those soft muddy places 
in which the buffaloes are fond of rolling 
their huge bodies in the heat of summer, so 
that, with the exception of a bruised and 
dirty face, and badly soiled clothes, the bold 
artist was none the worse for his adventure. 


112 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


CHAPTER XI. 


WINTER — SLEEPING IN THE SNOW — 

A NIGHT ALARM. 

UMMER passed away, autumn passed 



^ away, and winter came. So did Christ- 
mas, and so did Jasper’s marriage-day. 

Now the reader must understand that there 
is a wonderful difference between the winter 
in that part of the North American wilder- 
ness called Rupert’s Land, and winter in our 
own happy island. 

'Winter out there is from six to eight 
months long. The snow varies from -three 
to four feet deep, and in many places it drifts 
to fifteen or twenty feet deep. The ice on 
the lakes and rivers is -sometirnes above 
six feet thick ; and the salt sea itself, in 
Hudson’s Bay, is frozen over to a great ex- 
tent. Nothing like a thaw takes place for 
many months at a time, and the frost is so 
intense that it is a matter of difficulty to 
prevent one’s-self from being- frost-bitten. 
The whole country, during these long winter 
months, appears white, desolate, and silent. 

Yet a good many of the birds and animals 
keep moving about, though most of them do 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


113 


SO at night, and do not often meet the eye of 
man. The hear goes to sleep all winter in a 
hole, hut the wolf and the fox prowl about 
the woods at night. Ducks, geese, and plover 
no longer enliven the marshes with their wild 
cries; hut white grouse, or ptarmigan, fly 
about in immense flocks, and arctic hares 
make many tracks in the deep snow. Still, 
these are quiet creatures, and they scarcely 
break the deep dead silence of the forests in 
winter. 

At this period the Indian and the fur-trader 
wrap themselves in warm dresses of deer- 
skin, lined with the thickest flannel, and 
spend itheir short days in trapping and 
shooting. At night the Indian piles logs on 
his fire to keep out the frost, and adds to the 
warmth of his skin-tent by heaping snow up 
the outside of it all round. The fur-trader 
puts double window-frames and double panes 
of glass in his windows, puts on double doors, 
and heats his rooms with cast-iron stoves 

But do what he will, the fur-trader cannot 
keep out the cold altogether. He may heat 
the stove red-hot if he will, yet the water in 
the basins and jugs in the corner of his room 
10 * 


114 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


will be frozen, and his breath settles on the 
window-panes, and freezes there so thickly 
that it actually dims ttie light of the sun. 
This crust on the windows inside is sometimes 
an inch thick ! 

Thermometers in England are usually 
filled with quicksilver. In Eupert’s Land 
quicksilver would be frozen' half the winter, 
so spirit of wine is used instead, because that 
liquid will not freeze with any ordinary de- 
gree of cold. Here, the thermometer some- 
times falls as low as zero. Out there it does 
not rise so high as zero during the greater 
part of the winter, and it is often as low as 
twenty, thirty and even fifty degrees hehwzQvo. 

If the wind should blow when the cold is 
intense, no man dare face it — he would be 
certain to be frost-bitten. The parts of the 
body that are most easily frozen are the ears, 
the chin, the cheek-bones, the nose, the heels, 
fingers, and tees. The freezing of any part 
begins with a pricking sensation. When 
this occurs at the point of your nose, it is 
time to give earnest attention to that feature, 
else you run the risk of having it shortened. 
The best way to recover it is to rub it well, 
and to keep carefully away from the fire. 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


115 


The likest thing to a frost-bite is a burn. 
In fact, the two things are almost the same. 
In both cases the skin or flesh is destroyed, 
and becomres a sore. In the one case it is 
destroyed by fire, in the other by frost-; but 
in both it is painful and dangerous, accord- 
ing to the depth of the frost bite or the burn. 
Many a poor fellow loses -joints of his toes 
and fingers-^some have even lost their hands 
and feet by frost. Many have lost their lives. 
But the most common loss is the loss of the 
skin of the point of the nose, cheek-bones, and 
chin — a loss which is indeed painful, but can 
be replaced by nature in the course of time. 

Of course curious appearances are pro- 
duced by such intense cold. On going out 
into the open air, the breath settles on the 
breast, whiskers, and eyebrows in the shape 
of hoar-frost ; and jnen who go out in the 
morning for a ramble with black or brown 
locks, return at night with what appears to 
be gray hair ! sometimes with icicles hanging 
about their faces. Horses and cattle there 
are seldom without icicles hanging from their 
lips and noses in winter. 

Poor Mr. Pemberton was muck troubled 
in this w ay. He was a fat and heavy man, 


116 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


and apt to perspire freely. When he went 
out to shoot in winter, the moisture trickled 
down his face, and turned his whiskers into 
two little blocks of ice ; and he used to be 
often seen, after a hard day’s walk, sitting 
for a long time beside the Stove, holding his 
cheeks to the fire, and gently coaxing the 
icy blocks to let go their hold ! 

But for all this, the long winter of those 
regions is a bright enjoyable season.^ The 
cold is not felt so much as one would expect, 
because it is not damp, and the weather is 
usually bright and sunny. 

From what I have said, the reader will 
understand that summer in those regions is 
short-and very hot; the winter long and 
very cold. Both seasons have their own pe- 
culiar enjoyments, and, to healthy men, both 
are extremely ^agreeable. 

I have said that Jasper’s marriage-day had 
arrived. New Year’s Day was fixed for his 
union with the fair and gentle Marie. As is 
usual at this festive season of the year, it 
was arranged that a ball should be given at 
the fort in the large hall to all the .people 
that chanced to be there at the time. 

Old Laroche had been sent to a small hut 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 117 

a long day’s marcli from the fort, where he 
was wont to spend his time in trapping foxes. 
He was there alone, so, three days before- 
New Year’s Day, Jasper set out with Arrow- 
head to visit the old man, and bear him com- 
pany on his march back to the fort. 

There are no roads in that country. Tra- 
vellers have to plod through the wilderness 
as they best can. It may not have occurred 
to my reader that it would be a difficult thing 
to walk for a day through snow so deep, that, 
at every step, the traveller would sink the 
whole length of his leg. The truth is, that 
travelling in Rupert’s Land in winter would 
be impossible, but for a machine which 
enables men to walk on the surface of the 
snow without sinking more than a few inches. 
This machine is the snow-shoe. Snow-shoes 
vary in size and form in different parts of 
the country, but they are all used for the 
same purpose. Some are long and narrow ; 
others are nearly round. They vary in size 
from three to six feet in length, and from 
eight to twenty inches in breadth. They 
are extremely light — made of a framework 
of hard wood, and covered with a network 
of deer-skin, which, while it prevents the 


118 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


wearer from sinking more than a few inches, 
allows any snow that may chance to fall on 
the top of the shoe to pass through the net- 
ting. The value of this clumsy-Looking 
machine may be imagined, when I say that 
men with them will easily walk twenty, 
thirty, and even forty miles across a country 
over which they could not walk three miles 
without such helps. 

It was a bright, calm, frosty morning when 
Jasper and his friend set out on their short 
journey. The sun shone brilliantly, and the 
hoar-frost sparkled on the trees and bushes, 
causing them to appear as if they^had been 
covered with millions of diamonds. The 
breath of the two men came from their 
mouths like clouds of steam. Arrowhead 
wore the round snow-shoes which go by the 
name of bear’s paws^he preferred these to 
any others. Jasper wore the snow-shoes 
peculiar to the Chippewyan Indians. They 
were nearly as long as himself, and turned 
up at the point. Both men were dressed 
alike, in the yellow leathern costume of win- 
ter. The only difference being that Jasper 
wore a fur cap, while Arrowhead sported a 
cloth hrad-piece that covered his neck and 


















AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


119 


shoulders, and was ornamented with a pair 
of horns. 

All day the two men plodded steadily 
over the country. Sometimes they were 
toiling through deep snow in wooded places, 
sinking six or eight inches in spite of their 
snow-shoes. At other times, they were pass- 
ing swiftly over the surface of the open 
plains, where the snow was beaten so hard 
by exposure to the sun and wind that the 
shoes only just broke the crust and left their 
outlines behind. Then they reached a bend 
of the river, where they had again to plod 
heavily through the woods on its banks, 
until they came out upon its frozen surface. 
Here the snov;' was so hard, that they took 
off their snow-shoes and ran briskly along 
without them for a long space. 

Thus they travelled all day, without one 
halt, and made such good use of their time, 
that they arrived at the log-hut of Laroche 
early in the evening. 

''Well met, son-in-law, that is to he,'' cried 
the stout old man, heartily, as the two hunt- 
ers made their appearance before the low 
door- way of his hut, which was surrounded 
by trees and almost buried in snow. "If 


120 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


you had been half an hour later. I would 
have met ye in the woods.” 

How so, father-in-law, that is to he,'' said 
Jasper, were ye goin’ out to your traps so 
late as this ?” 

‘‘ Hay, man, but I was startin^or the fort. 
It’s a long way, as you know, and my old 
limbs are not just so supple as yours. I 
thought I would travel to-night, and sleep 
in the woods, so as to be there in good time 
to-morrow. But come in, come in, and rest 
you. I warrant me you’ll not feel inclined 
for more walkin’ to-night.” 

“How my name is not Jasper Derry if I 
enter your hut this night.” said the hunter 
stoutly. “ If r could not- turn round and 
walk straight back to the fort this night, I 
would not be worthy of your- daughter, old 
man. So come along with -you. What say 
you, Arrowhead; shall we go straight back?’' 

“Good,” answered the Indian. 

“Well, well,” cried Laroche, laughing, 
“lead the way, and I will follow in youi 
footsteps. It becomes young men to beat 
the track, and old ones to take it easy.” 

The three men turned their faces towards 
Fort Erie, and were soon far away from the 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


121 


log-hut. They walked steadily and silently 
along, without once halting, until the night 
became so dark that it was difficult to avoid 
stumps and bushes. Then they ^prepared 
to encampdn the^snow. 

Now it may seem to many people a very 
disagreeable idea, that of. sleeping out in 
snow, but . one who has tried it can assure 
them that it is not so bad as it seems. No 
doubt, when Jasper halted in the cold dark 
woods, and said, “I think this will be a 
pretty good place to sleep,” any one unac 
quainted with the customs of that country 
would have thought the man was jesting or 
mad ; for, besides being very dismal, in con- 
sequence of its being pitch dark, it was ex- 
cessively cold, and snow was falling -steadily 
and softly on the ground. But Jasper knew 
what he was about, and so did the others. 
Without saying a word, the three men flung 
down their bundles of provisions, and each 
eet to work to make the ^ encampment. Of 
course they had to work in darkness so thick 
that even the white snow could . scarcely be 
seen. 

First of all they selected a tree, the 
branches of which were so thick and spread- 
11 


122 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


ing as to form a good shelter from the falling 
snow. Here Jasper and Laroche used their 
snow-shoes as shovels, while Arrowhead 
plied his axe and soon cut enough of fire- 
wood for the night. He also cut a large 
bundle of small branches for bedding. A 
space of about twelve feet long, by six broad, 
was cleared at the foot of the tree in half an 
hour. But the snow was so deep that they 
had to dig down four feet before they 
reached the turf. As the snow taken out of 
the hole was thrown up all around it, the 
walls rose to nearly seven feet. 

Arrowhead next lighted a roaring fire at 
one end of this cleared space, the others 
strewed the branches over the space in front 
of it, and spread their blankets on the top, 
after which the kettle was put on to boil, 
buffalo steaks were stuck up before the fire 
to roast, and the men then lay down to rest 
and smoke, while supper was preparing. The 
intense cold prevented the fire from melting 
the snowy walls of this encampment, which 
shone and sparkled in the red blaze like 
pink marble studded all over with diamonds, 
while the spreading branches formed a ruddy- 
looking ceiling When they had' finished 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


123 


supper, tlie heat of the fire and the heat of 
their food made the travellers feel quite 
warm and -comfortable, in spite of John 
Frost ; and when they at last wrapped^their 
blankets round them and laid their heads 
together on the branches, they fell into a 
sleep more sound and refreshing than they 
would have enjoyed had they gone to rest in 
a warm house, upon the best bed in England. 

But when the fire went out, about the 
middle of the night, the cold became so 
intense that they were awakened by it, so 
Jasper rose and blew up the fire, and the 
other two sat up and filled their pipes, while 
their teeth chattered in their heads. Soon 
the blaze and the smoke warmed them, and 
again they lay down to sleep comfortably 
till morning. 

Before daybreak, however, Arrowhead — 
who never slept so soundly but that he could 
be wakened by the slightest unusual noise — 
slowly raised his head and touched Jasper 
on the shoulder. The hunter was too well 
trained to the dangers of the wilderness to 
start up or speak. He uttered no word, but 
took up his gun softly and looked in the 
direction in which the Indian’s eyes gazed. 


124 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


A small red spot in tlie ashes served to re- 
veal a pair of glaring eye-balls among the 
bushes. 

'‘A wolf,” whispered Jasper, cocking his 
gun. 

^‘No ; a man,” said Arrowhead. 

At the sound of the click of the lock the 
object in the bushes moved. Jasper leaped 
up in an instant, pointed his gun, and shouted 
sternly — 

Stand fast and speak, or I fire!” 

At the same moment Arrowhead kicked 
the logs of the fire, and a bright flame leapt 
up, showing that the owner of the pair •of 
eyes was an Indian. Seeing that he was dis- 
covered, and that if he turned to run he 
would certainly be shot, the savage came 
forward sulkily and sat down beside the fire. 
Jasper asked him why he came there in that 
stealthy manner like a sly fox. The Indian 
said he was merely travelling by night, and 
had come on the camp unexpectedly. Not 
knowing who was there, he had come forward 
with caution. 

Jasper was not satisfied with this reply. 
He did not like the look of the man, and he 
felt sure that he had seen him somewhere 


AWAl IN THE WILDERNESS. 


125 


before, but his face was disfigured with war- 
paint, and he could not feel certain on that 
point until he remembered the scene in the 
trading store at Jasper’s House. 

What-^Darkeye !” cried he, can it be 
you?” 

'‘Darkeye!” shouted Laroche, suddenly 
rising from his reclining position and staring 
the Indian in the face with a dark scowl. 

Why, Jasper, this is the villain who in- 
sulted my ^daughter, and to whom I taught 
the lesson that an old man could knock him 
down.” 

•The surprise and indignation of Jasper on 
hearing this was great, but remembering that 
the savage had already been punished for 
his .offence, and that it would be mean to 
take advantage of him when there wer^ three 
to one, he merely said — ‘‘Well, well, I won’t 
bear a grudge against a man who is coward 
enough to ' insult a woman. I would kick 
you out o’ the camp, Darkey e, but as you 
might use your gun when you got into the 
bushes, I won’t give you that chance. At 
the same time, we can’t afford to lose the rest 
of our nap for you, so Arrowhead will keep 
11 ^ 


126 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


you safe here and watch you, while Laroche 
and I sleep. We will let you go at day* 
break.” 

Saying this Jasper lay down beside his 
father-in-law, and they were both asleep in 
a few minutes, leaving the two Indians to 
sit and scowl at each other beside the fire. 


CHAPTER XII. . 

THE WEDDING, AN ARRIVAL, A FEAST, AND 
A BALL. 

N ew Year’s Day came at last, and on 
the morning of that day Jasper Derry 
and Marie Laroche were made man and wife. 
They were married by the Rev. Mr. Wilson, 
a Wesleyan missionary, who had come to 
Fort Erie a few days before, on a visit to the 
tribes of Indians in that neighborhood. 

The North American Indian has no reli- 
gion worthy of the name ; but he has a con- 
science, like other men, which tells him that 
it is wrong to murder and to steal. Yet, 
although he knows this, he seldom hesitates 
to do both when ^e is tempted thereto. Mr, 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


127 


Wilson was one of those earnest missionaries 
who go to that wilderness and face its dan- 
gers, as well as its hardships and sufferings, 
for the sake of teaching the savage that the 
mere knowledge of right and wrong is not 
enough— that the love of God, wrought in 
the heart of man by the Holy Spirit, alone can 
enable him to resist evil and do good — that 
belief in the Lord Jesus Christ alone can save 
the soul. 

There are several missionaries of this stamp 
— men who love the name of Jesus — in that 
region, and there are a number of stations, 
where the good seed of God’s Word is being 
planted in the wilderness. But I have not 
space, and this is not the place, to enlarge 
on the great and interesting subject of mis- 
sionary work in Rupert’s Land. I must re- 
turn to my narrative. 

It was, as I have said, Hew Year’s Day 
when Jasper and Marie were married. And 
a remarkably bright, beautiful morning it 
was. The snow appeared whiter than usual, 
and the countless gems of hoar-frost that hung 
on shrub and tree seemed to sparkle more 
than asual ; even the sun appeared to shine 
more brightly than ever it did before — at 


128 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


least it seemed so in the eyes of Jasper and 
Marie. 

^‘Everything seems to smile on us to-day,. 
Marie,*’ said Jasper, as they stood with some 
of their friends at the gate of the fort, just 
after the ceremony was concluded. 

“ I trust that God may smile on you, and 
bless your union, my friends,” said Mr. Wil- 
son, coming forward with a small Bible in 
his hand. “Here is a copy of God’s Word, 
Jasper, which I wish you to accept of, and 
keep as a remembrance of me and of this 
day.” 

“ I’ll keep it, sir, and I thank you heartily,” 
said Jasper, taking the book and returning 
the grasp of the missionary’s hand. 

“ And my chief object in giving it to you, 
Jasper, is, that you and Marie may read it 
often, and find joy and peace to your souls.” 

As the missionary said this a faint sound, 
like the tinkling of distant bells, was heard 
in the frosty air. 

Looks of surprise and excitement showed 
that this was an unwonted sound. And so 
it was ; for only once or twice during the 
long winter did a visitor gladden Fort Erie 
with his presence. These sweet sounds were 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


129 


the tinkling of . sleigh-bells, and they told 
that a stranger was .approaching — that, let- 
ters, perhaps, and news from far-distant 
homes, might be .near at hand. 

Only twice in the year did the Europeans at 
that lonely outpost receive letters from home. 
Little wonder that they longed for them, and 
that they went almost wild with joy when 
they name. 

Soon the sleigh appeared in sight coming 
up the river at full speed, and a loud hur- 
rah !” from the men at the gate, told the 
visitor that he was a welcome.guest. It was 
a ^og-sleigh — a sort of- con veyance much 
used by the fur-traders in winter-travelling. 
In form, it was as^like as possible to a tin 
slipper-bath. It might also be compared to 
ar-shoe. If the reader will try to conceive of 
a shoe large enough to hold a. man, sitting 
with his legs out before him, that will give 
him a good idea of the shape of a dog-cariole. 
There is sometimes an ornamental curve in 
front. It is made of two thin hardwood 
planks curled up in front, with a light frame- 
work of 'wood, covered over with deer or 
buffalo skin, and painted in a very gay man- 
ner. Four dogs are usually harnessed to it, 


130 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


and these are quite sufficient to drag a man 
on a journey of many days, over every sort 
of country, where there is no-Toad whatever. 
Dogs are much used for hauling little sledges 
in that country in winter. The traveller sits 
wrapped up so completely in furs, that 
nothing but his head is visible. He is at- 
tended by a driver on snow-shoes, who is 
armed with a large whip. No reins are used. 
If the snow is hard, as is usually the case on 
the surface of a lake or river, the driver 
walks behind and holds on to a tail-line, to 
prevent the dogs from running away. If 
the traveller’s way lies through the woods, 
the snow is so soft and deep that the. poor 
dogs are neither willing nor able to run away. 
It is as much as they can do to walk ; so the 
driver goes before them, in this case, and 
beats down the snow with his snow shoes — 
beats the track,” as it is called. The har- 
ness of the dogs is usually very gay, and 
covered with little bells which give forth a 
cheerful tinkling sound. 

It’s young Cameron,” cried Mr. Pember- 
ton, hastening forward to welcome the new 
comer. 

Cameron was the gentleman in charge of 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


131 


the nearest outpost— two hundred and fifty 
miles down the river. 

“ Welcome, Cameron, my boy, welcome to 
Fort Erie. You are the pleasantest sight we 
have seen here for many a day,” said Pem- 
berton, shaking the young man heartily by 
the hand as soon as he had jumped out of 
his sleigh. 

Come, Pemberton, 5 mu forget Miss Marie 
Laroche when you talk of my being the 
pleasantest . sight, said Cameron laughing. 

“ Ah ! -true. Pardon me, Marie” — 

‘‘Excuse me, gentlemen,” interrupted Jas- 
per, with much gravity, “ I know of no such 
person as Miss Marie Laroche 1” 

“ How? what do you mean?” said Cameron, 
vrith a puzzled look. 

“Jasper is right,” explained Pemberton, 
“ Marie was Miss Laroche yesterday ; she is 
Mrs. Derry to-day.” 

<“ Then I salute you Mrs. Derry, and con- 
gratulate you both,” cried the young man, 
kissing the bride’s fair cheek, “ and I rejoice 
to find that I am still in time to dance at 
your wedding.” 

“ Ay,” said Pemberton, as they moved up 
to the hall, “that reminds me to ask you 
why you are so late. I expected you before 
Christmas Day.” 

“I had intended to be here by that day,” 
replied Cameron, “but one of my men cut 
his foot badly with an axe, and I could not 


132 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


leave him ; then my dogs broke down on the 
journey, and that detained me still longer. 
But you will forgive my being so late, I 
think, when I tell you that I have got a 
packet of letters with me.” 

‘^Letters I” shouted every one. 

Ay, letters and newspapers from Eng- 
land.” 

A loud cheer greeted this announcement. 
The' packet was hauled out of the sleigh, 
hurried up to the fort,-^rn open with - eager 
haste, and the fur-traders of Fort Erie. were 
soon devouring the contents like hungry 
men. 

And they hungry nien — they were 
starving! Those who. see their kindred and 
friends daily, or hear from them weekly, 
cannot understand the feelings of men who 
hear from them only twice in the year. 
Great improvements have taken place in this 
matter of late years ; still, many of the Hud- 
son Bay Company’s outposts are so distant 
from the civilized world, that they cannot 
get news from “ home” oftener than^twice a 
year. 

It was a sight to study and moralize over 
— the countenances of these banished men. 
The trembling anxiety lest there should be 
*^bad news.” The gleam of joy, and the 
deep “thank God,” on reading “all well.” 
Then the smiles, the. sighs, the laughs, the 
exclamations of surprise, perhaps the tears 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


133 


that would spring to their eyes as they read 
the brief but, to them, thrilling private his- 
tory of the^past half year. 

• dhiere was no bad news in that packet, and 
a feeling of deep joy was poured into the 
hearts of the people of the fort by these 
“ good news from a far country.” Even the 
half-breeds and Indians, who could not share 
the feeling, felt the sweet influence of the 
general happiness that was diffused among 
the fur-traders on that bright New^ Year’s 
Day in the wilderness. 

What a -dinner they had that day, to be 
sure! What juicy roasts of buffalo beef; 
what enormous steaks of the same ; what a 
magnificent venison pasty; and what glori- 
ous marrow-bones — not to mention tongues, 
and hearts, and grouse, and other things 1 
But the great feature of the feast was the 
plum-pudding. It was like a. huge cannon- 
ball with the .measles 1 There was wine, too, 
on this occasion. Not much, it is true, but 
more than enough, for it had been saved up 
all the year expressly for the Christmas and 
New Year’s festivities. Thus they were en- 
abled to drink to absent friends, and bring 
up all the old toasts and songs that used to 
be so familiar long' ago in the ‘‘old country.” 
But these sturdy traders needed no stimu- 
lants. There were one or two who even 
scorned the wine, and stuck to water, and to 
12 


134 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


their -credit be it said, that they toasted and 
sang with the best of them. 

At night there was a ball, and the ball 
beat the dinner out of sight. Few indeed 
were the women, but numerous were the 
men. Indian women are not famous for 
grace or cleanliness, poor things. But they 
enjoyed the ball, and they did their best to 
dance. Such dancing ! They seemed to have 
no joints. They stood up stiff as lamp- 
posts, and went with an up-and-down motion 
from side to side. But the men did the 
thing bravely, especially the Indians. The 
only dances attempted were Scotch reels, and 
the Indians tried to copy the fur-traders ; but 
on finding this somewhat difficult, they in- 
troduced some surprising steps of their own, 
which threw the others entirel}^ into the 
shade! There was unfortunately no. fiddler, 
but there was a fiddle — one made of pine 
wood by an Indian, with strings of deer- 
skin sinew. Some of the boldest of the 
party scraped time without regard to tune^ 
and our friend Hey wood beat the kettle- 
drum. The tones of the fiddle at last be- 
came so horrible, that it was banished alto- 
gether, and they danced that night to the 
kettle-drum 1 

Of course the fair bride was the queen of 
that ball. Her countenance was the light of 
it, and her modest, womanly manner had a 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS, 


135 


softening influence on the rough men who 
surrounded her. 

C When the ball was -over, a curious thing 
occurred in the hall in which it had taken 
place. The room was heated by a stove,’ 
and as a stove dries the air of a room too 
much, it was . customary to keep a^ pan of 
water on the stove to moisten it a little. This 
moisture was increased that night by the 
steam of the supper and by. the wild danc- 
ing, so that when all was over, the walls and 
ceiling were covered with drops of water. 
During the night this all froze in the form 
of small beautifully -shaped crystals, and in 
the morning they found themselves in a 
crystal palace of nature’s own formation, 
which beat all the crystal palaces that ever 
were heard of— at least in originality, if not 
in splendor. 

Thus happily ended the-marriage-day of 
honest Jasper Der^;y and sweet Marie La- 
roche, and thus pleasantly began the. dpw 
year of 18—. But, as surely as darkness, 
follows light, and night follows day, so 
surely does sorrow tread on the heels of 
joy in the history of man. God has so or- 
dained it, and he is wise wha counts upon 
experiencing both. 


136 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


CHAPTEE XIII. 

THE CONCLUSION. 

A "WEEK after the events narrated in 
the last chapter, Jasper Derry was 
sitting beside the stove in the hall at Fort 
Erie, smoking his pipe, and conversing with 
his father-in-law about his- intention of going 
to Lake Winnipeg with the brigade in spring, . 
and proceeding thence to Canada in a bark 
canoe. 

“ Of course,” said he, “ I will take Marie 
with me, and, if you’ll take my advice, 
father, you’ll come too.” 

‘‘ No, my son, not yet awhile,” said old 
Laroche, shaking his head ; “ I have a year 
yet to serve the Company before my engage- 
ment is out. After that I may -come, if I’m 
spared ; but you know that the Indians are 
not safe just now, and some of them, I fear, 
bear me a grudge, for they’re a revengeful set.” 

That’s true, father, but supposii^that all 
goes well with you, will ye come an’ live 
with Marie and me ?” 

''We shall see, lad; we shall see,” replied 
Laroche, with a pleased smile ; for the old 
guide evidently enjoyed the prospect of 
spending the evening of life in the land of 
his fathers, and under the roof- tree of his sod 
and daughter. 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


137 


At tliat moment tlie report of a gun was 
heard outside the house. One of the window 
panes was. smashed, and at the same instant 
Laroche fell heavily forward on the floor. 

Jasper sprang up and endeavored to raise 
him, but found that he was insensible. He laid 
him carefully on his back, and hastily opened 
the breast of his coat. A few drops of blood 
showed where he had been wounded. Mean 
while several of the men who had been 
attracted by the gunshot so close to the 
house, burst into the room. 

“Stand back, stand back, give him air,” 
cried Jasper ; “ stay, 0 God help us ! the old 
man is shot clean through the heart !” 

For one moment Jasper looked up with a 
bewildered glance in the faces of the men, 
then, uttering a wild cry of mingled rage 
and agony, he sprang up, dashed them aside, 
and, catching up his gun and snow-shoes, 
rushed out of the house. 

He soon found a fresh track in the snow, 
and the length of the stride, coupled with 
the manner in which the snow was cast 
aside, and the smaller, bushes were broken 
and trodden down, told him that the fugitive 
had made it. In a moment he was following 
the track with the utmost speed of which he 
was capable. He never once halted, or 
faltejTTd, or turned aside, all that day. His 
iron frame seemed to be incapable of fatigue. 

12 * 


138 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


He went with his body bent forward, his 
brows lowering, and his lips firmly com- 
pressed; but he was not successful. The 
murderer had got a sufficiently long start of 
him to render what sailors call a stern chase 
a long one. Still Jasper never thought of 
giving up the pursuit, until he came sud- 
denly on an open space, where the snow had 
been recently trodden down by a herd of 
bufialoes, and by a band of Indians who 
were in chase of them. 

Here he lost the track, and although he 
searched long and carefully he could not 
find it. Late that night the baffled hunter 
returned to the fort. 

‘‘You have failed — I see by your look,” 
said Mr. Pemberton, as Jasper entered. 

“Ay, I have failed,” returned the other 
gloomily. “He must have gone with the 
band of Indians among whose tracks I lost 
his footsteps.” 

“ Have you any idea who can have done 
this horrible deed ?” said Pemberton. 

“It was Darkeye,” said Jasper in a stern 
voice. 

Some of the Indians who. chanced to be in 
the hall were startled, and rose on hearing this. 

“Be not alarmed, friends,” said the fur- 
trader. “You are the guests of Christian 
men. We will not punish you for the deeds 
of another man of your tribe.” 

‘* How does the white man know that this 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


139 


was done by Darkeye?” asked a chief 
haughtily. 

know said Jasper, angrily ; feel 
sure of it ; but I cannot prove it — of course. 
Does Arrowhead agree with me?” 

He does !” replied the Indian, “ and there 
may be proof. Does Jasper remember the 
trading store and the hitten hulletf'' 

A gleam of intelligence shot across the 
countenance of the white hunter as his com- 
rade said this. ‘‘True, Arrowhead, true.” 

He turned, as he spoke, to the body of his 
late father-in-law, and examined the wound. 
The ball, after passing through the heart, 
had lodged in the back, just under the skin. 

“See,” said he to the Indians, “I will 
cut out this ball, but before doing so, I will 
tell how I think it is marked.” 

He then related the incident in the trading 
store, with which the reader is already ac- 
quainted, and afterwards extracted the ball, 
which, although much flattened and knocked 
out of shape, showed clearly the deep marks 
made by the Indian’s teeth. Thus, the act 
which had been done slyly but boastfully 
before the eyes of a comrade, probably as 
wicked as himself, became the means where- 
b}'’ Darkeye’s guilt was clearly proved. 

At once a party of his own tribe were 
directed by their chief to go out in pursuit 
cf the murderer. 

It were, vain for me to endeavor to de- 


140 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


scribe the anguish of poor Marie, on being 
deprived of a kind and loving father in so 
awful and sudden a manner. I will drop a 
veil over her grief, which was too deep and 
sacred to be intermeddled with. 

On the day following the murder, a band 
of Indians arrived at Fort Erie with buffalo 
skins for sale. To the amazement of every- 
one Darkeje himself was among them. The 
wily savage— knowing that his attempting to 
quit that part of the country as a fugitive 
would be certain to fix suspicion on him as 
the rnurderer-^resolved to face the fur- 
traders as if he were ignorant of the deed 
which had been done. By the very boldness 
of this step he hoped to disarm suspicion; 
but he forgot the hitten hall. 

It was therefore a look of genuine sur- 
prise that rose to Darkeye’s visage, when, 
the moment he entered the fort, Mr. Pem- 
berton seized him by the right arm, and led 
him into the hall. 

At first he attempted to seize the handle 
of his knife, but a glance at the numbers of 
the white men, and the indifference of his 
own friends, showed him that his best 
chance lay in cunning. 

The Indians who had arrived with him 
were soon informed by the others of the 
cause of this, and all of them crowded into 
the hall to watch the proceedings. The body 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


141 


of poor Laroche was laid on a table, and 
Darkeye was led up to it. The cunning 
Indian put on a pretended look of surprise 
on beholding it, and then the usual expres- 
sion of stolid gravity settled on his face as 
he turned to Mr. Pemberton for information. 

“ Your hand did this,” said the fur-trader. 

“ Is Darkeye a dog that he should slay an 
old man ?” said the savage. 

“No, you’re not a dog,” cried Jasper 
fiercely, “you are worse — a cowardly mur- 
derer!” 

“ Stand back, Jasper,” said Mr. Pember- 
ton, laying his hand on the shoulder of the 
excited hunter, and thrusting him firmly 
away. “ This is a serious charge. The 
Indian shall not be hastily condemned. He 
shall have fair play, and jiisticey 

“ Good 1” cried several of the Indians on 
hearing this. Meanwhile the principal chief 
of the tribe took up his stand close beside 
the prisoner. 

“Darkeye,” said Mr. Pemberton, while he 
looked steadfastly into the eyes of the Indian, 
who returned the look as steadily — “ Dark- 
eye, do you remember a conversation you 
had many weeks ago in the trading store at 
Jasper’s House?” 

The countenance of the Indian was in 
stantly troubled, and he said with some hesi- 
tation, “Darkeye has had many conversa- 


142 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


tioDS in tliat store; is "he a medicine-man’* 
that he should .know what you mean ?” 

I will only put one other question,” said 
the fur-trader. “Do you know this bullet 
with the marks of teeth in it ?” 

Darkeye’s visage fell at once. He became 
deadly pale, and his limbs trembled. He 
was about to speak, when the chief, who had 
hitherto stood in silence at his side,, suddenly 
whirled his tomahawk in the air, and, bring- 
ing it down on the murderer’s skull,.' cleft 
bira to the^iihin ! 

A fierce yell followed this act, and several 
scalping-knives reached the dead man’s heart 
before his body fell to the , ground. ■ The 
scene that followed was -terrible. ( The sav- 
ages were roused to a state of -frenzy, and for 
a moment the white men feared an attack, 
but the anger of the Indians was altogether 
directed against their dead comrade, who had 
been disliked by his people, while his poor 
victim Laroche had been a universal favorite) 
Seizing the bodj^ of Darkeye, they carried it 
down to the banks of the river, hooting and 
yelling as they went ; hacked and. cut it 
nearly to pieces, and then, kindling a large 
fire, they threw the mangled, corpse into it, 
and burned it to ashes. 

It was long before the shadow of this dark 
cloud passed away from Fort Erie; and it 
* A conjurer. 


AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 


143 


was longer still before poor Marie recovered 
her wonted clieerfulness. But the presence 
of Mr. Wilson did much to comfort her. 
Gradually time softened the pang and healed 
the wound. 

******* 

And, now, little remains to be told. 
Winter passed away and spring came, and 
when the rivers and lakes were sufficiently 
free from ice, the brigade of boats left Fort 
Erie, laden with furs for the sea-coast. 

On arriving at Lake Winnipeg, Jasper 
obtained a small canoe, and placing his wife 
and Heywood in the middle of it, he and 
Arrowhead took the paddles, seated them- 
selves in the bow and stern, and guided their 
frail bark through many hundreds of miles 
of wilderness — over many a rough portage, 
across many a beautiful lake, and up ma,ny 
a roaring torrent, until, finally, they arrived 
•in Canada. 

Here Jasper settled. His farm prospered 
— his family increased. Sturdy boys, in 
course of time, ploughed the land, and bloom- 
ing daughters tended the dairy. Yet Jasper 
Derry did not cease to toil. He was one of 
those men who feel that they were made to 
work, and that much happiness flows from 
working. He often used to. say that if it was 
God’s will, he would like to die in harness.” 

Jasper’s only weakness was the pipe. It 
stuck to him and he stuck to it to the last. 


144 ATVAY IN THE WILDERNESS. 

Marie, in course of time, came to tolerate it 
and regularly filled it for him every night. 

Evening was the time when the inmates 
of Erie Cottage (as their residence was named) 
enjoyed themselves most ; for it was then that 
the stalwart sons and the blooming daughters 
circled round the great fire of wood that 
roared, on winter nights, up the chimney; 
and it was then that Jasper received his pipe 
from his still good-looking, though rather 
stout, Marie, and began to spin yarns about 
his young days. At this time, too, it was, 
that the door would frequently open, and a 
rugged old Indian would stalk in like a ma- 
hogany ghost, and squat down in front of 
the fire. He was often followed by a tall 
thin old gentleman, who was extremely ex- 
citable, but good humored. Jasper greeted 
these two remarkable-looking men by the 
names of Arrowhead and Hey wood. 

And glad were the young people when 
they saw their wrinkled faces, for then, they 
knew from experience, their old father would 
become more lively than usual, and would 
go on for hours talking of all the wonders 
and dangers that he had seen and encoun- 
tered long, long ago, when he and his two 
friends were away in the wilderness. 


THE END. 


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